blindness

UK/ˈblaɪndnəs/US/ˈblaɪndnəs/

nounB2Common in everyday speech and writing · #7,297 of 15,258neutral

Blindness is the state of being unable to see. Total blindness, night blindness, colour blindness.

Most people registered blind have some sight, and complete darkness is rarer than the word suggests. Preventable causes account for a large share of it worldwide, cataract above all. Figuratively, blindness to something means refusing to notice it.

Definitions of blindness

1nounblindnessThe state of being unable to see.B2
“The disease can cause blindness if it isn't treated early.”

blindness is a condition.

Where it comes from

Old English blindnes is blind plus -ness. Blind comes from a Germanic root that may first have meant confused or dark.

Old English
blindnes — blindness
Middle English
blyndnes
English, today
blindness

From Middle English blyndnes, blyndnesse, from Old English blindnes (“blindness”), equivalent to blind + -ness.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Word Building

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blindness in the wild

Diagnosis of color blindness is usually done with a color vision test, such as the Ishihara test.
Color blindness
There is no cure for most causes of color blindness; however, there is ongoing research into gene therapy for some severe conditions causing color blindness.
Color blindness
Symptoms include severe itching, bumps under the skin, and blindness.
Onchocerciasis
Another cause of night blindness is a deficiency of retinol, or vitamin A1, found in fish oils, liver, and dairy products.
Nyctalopia
Since the outer area of the retina is made up of more rods than cones, loss of peripheral vision often results in night blindness.
Nyctalopia

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

blind

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