Definition of bleak

Email this page to a friend

< bleaching powder

bleak >

bleak¹    (blk) KEY 

ADJECTIVE:
bleak·er, bleak·est

1. 1. Gloomy and somber: "Life in the Aran Islands has always been bleak and difficult" (John Millington Synge).
   2. Providing no encouragement; depressing: a bleak prospect.
2. Cold and cutting; raw: bleak winds of the North Atlantic.
3. Exposed to the elements; unsheltered and barren: the bleak, treeless regions of the high Andes.

---

ETYMOLOGY:
Middle English bleik, pale, from Old Norse bleikr, white; see bhel-¹ in Indo-European roots

OTHER FORMS:
bleakly(Adverb), bleakness(Noun)