What does "stare" mean?
A persistent gaze.
Stare
/stɛɚ/ name, noun, verb
name, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A persistent gaze.
- Grammar: stare is listed as name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: agaze, be amazed, be astonished, be curious.
- Useful contrasts: casual glance, avert, averting.
- Usage evidence: People shouldn't stare at foreigners.
How to use "stare"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "stare" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "stare" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "stare" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "stare" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "stare" is acting as name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "agaze" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "stare", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A persistent gaze.
"the stares of astonished passers-by"
- 2 A starling. archaic
"The Stares be bigger than thoſe in England, as blacke as Crovves, being the most troubleſome, and injurious bird of all others, pulling up the cornes by the roots, vvhen it is young, […]"
- 3 a fixed look with eyes open wide wordnet
Verb
- 1 To look fixedly (at something). intransitive
"She found him staring with raised eyebrows at her."
- 2 fixate one's eyes wordnet
- 3 To influence in some way by looking fixedly. transitive
"to stare a timid person into submission"
- 4 look at with fixed eyes wordnet
- 5 To be very conspicuous on account of size, prominence, colour, or brilliancy. intransitive
"staring windows or colours"
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To stand out; to project; to bristle. intransitive, obsolete
"Makest my blood cold, and my hair to stare."
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname; Fredrick John Stare (1910–2002), American nutritionist
- 2 A village in the Gmina of Rogoźno, Oborniki County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland.
- 3 A surname; Ward Stare (born 1982), American conductor
- 4 A village in the Gmina of Wysoka, Piła County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland.
- 5 A hamlet in the Gmina of Kaźmierz, Szamotuły County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Poland.
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 A former village in the former Irkliiv Raion, Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine, founded before 1750, destroyed in 1959–60 by the flooding of the Kremenchuk Reservoir
- 7 A village in Voronkiv rural hromada, Boryspil Raion, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine, founded in 1455.
- 8 A village in Zghurivka settlement hromada, Brovary Raion, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine, founded in 1910.
- 9 A rural settlement in Kadiivka urban hromada, Alchevsk Raion, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine, founded in 1930, controlled by the Luhansk People’s Republic since 2014.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"People shouldn't stare at foreigners."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "stare"?
Common synonyms include: agaze, be amazed, be astonished, be curious, bedroom eyes, blazing glare.
How do you use "stare" in a sentence?
People shouldn't stare at foreigners.
How do you pronounce "stare"?
Pronounced /stɛɚ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English staren, from Old English starian (“to stare”), from Proto-West Germanic *starēn, from Proto-Germanic *starjaną, *starāną (“to be fixed, be rigid”), from Proto-Indo-European *ster-. Cognate with Dutch staren (“to stare”), German starren (“to stare”), German starr (“stiff”). More at start.
Etymology 2
From Middle English star, ster, from Old English stær (“starling”), from Proto-Germanic *starô (“starling”), from Proto-Indo-European *stor- (“starling”). Cognate with German Star (“starling”), Danish stær (“starling”), Swedish stare (“starling”), Norwegian Nynorsk stare (“starling”), Icelandic stari (“starling”). Compare also Old English stearn (“a type of bird, starling”).
Etymology 3
From Polish Stare and Ukrainian Старе́ (Staré), both neuter substantives of adjectives — Polish stary and Ukrainian стари́й (starýj) — meaning “old”, both of which ultimately descend from Proto-Slavic *stàrъ. Compare Staroye.