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Definition of near adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

near

adjective
 
 
/nɪə(r)/
 
/nɪr/
(comparative nearer, superlative nearest)
In senses 1 to 4 near and nearer do not usually go before a noun; nearest can go either before or after a noun.Idioms
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  1.  
     a short distance away synonym close2
    • His house is very near.
    • Where's the nearest bank?
    • Wales may be a near neighbour but its history is quite distinct.
    Which Word? next / nearestnext / nearest
    • (The) next means ‘after this/​that one’ in time or in a series of events, places or people:
      • When is your next appointment?
      • Turn left at the next traffic lights.
      • Who’s next?
      (The) nearest means ‘closest’ in space:
      • Where’s the nearest supermarket?
    • Notice the difference between the prepositions nearest to and next to:
      • Janet’s sitting nearest to the window (= of all the people in the room).
      • Sarah’s sitting next to the window (= right beside it).
      In informal British English nearest can be used instead of nearest to:
      • Who’s sitting nearest the door?
  2.  
     a short time away in the future
    • The conflict is unlikely to be resolved in the near future (= very soon).
    • Working memory refers to the brain's ability to remember things in the short or near term.
  3.  
     coming next after somebody/something
    • She has a 12-point lead over her nearest rival.
  4.  
    (usually nearest)
    similar; most similar
    • He was the nearest thing to (= the person most like) a father she had ever had.
    see also o.n.o.
  5.  
     [only before noun] (no comparative or superlative) close to being somebody/something
    • The election proved to be a near disaster for the party.
    • a near impossibility
    • She spoke in a near whisper.
    • The climbers had already had one near miss on the summit.
    Which Word? near / closenear / close
    • The adjectives near and close are often the same in meaning, but in some phrases only one of them may be used:
      • the near future
      • a near neighbour
      • a near miss
      • a close contest
      • a close encounter
      • a close call
      .
    • Close is more often used to describe a relationship between people:
      • a close friend
      • close family
      • close links
      . You do not usually use near in this way.
  6.  
     [only before noun] near relative/relation used to describe a close family connection
    • Only the nearest relatives were present at the funeral.
    Topics Family and relationshipsb2
    7. Word OriginMiddle English: from Old Norse nær ‘nearer’, comparative of ná, corresponding to Old English nēah ‘nigh’.
Idioms
your nearest and dearest
  1. (informal) your close family and friends
a near thing
  1. a situation in which you are successful, but which could also have ended badly
    • Phew! That was a near thing! It could have been a disaster.
    • We won in the end but it was a near thing.
    Topics Successc2
to the nearest…
  1. followed by a number when counting or measuring approximately
    • We calculated the cost to the nearest 50 dollars.
See near in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee near in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: near

Nearby words

trait
noun
 
 
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