blur

To make something hard to see clearly or make a difference harder to notice.

• Tears blurred her vision.
• The camera blurred the background.
• These rules blur the distinction between work and leisure.

How to use it: blur the distinction between A and B (The new policy blurs the distinction between employees and contractors.)

Similar words: obscure, dim

Opposites: sharpen, clarify

Common phrases: blur an image, blur the distinction, blur the lines

To spread wet ink, paint, or another substance so that it leaves an unclear mark.

• Wet fingers blurred the ink.
• She blurred the writing while turning the damp page.
• Be careful not to blur the fresh paint.

Similar words: smudge, smear

Common phrases: blur the ink, blur the writing

Something you cannot see clearly because it moves quickly or has no clear edges.

• The car passed in a blur.
• Without my glasses, everything is a blur.
• I saw a red blur rushing past the window.

Common phrases: a distant blur, a colourful blur, a grey blur, a faint blur