bare (adj.)

Old English bær "naked, uncovered, unclothed," from Proto-Germanic *bazaz (source also of German bar, Old Norse berr, Dutch baar), from PIE *bhoso- "naked" (source also of Armenian bok "naked;" Old Church Slavonic bosu, Lithuanian basas "barefoot"). Meaning "sheer, absolute" (c. 1200) is from the notion of "complete in itself."

bare (v.)

"make bare, uncover," Old English barian, from bare (adj.). Related: Bared; baring.

Entries linking to bare

ballast (n.)

"heavy material used to steady a ship," 1520s, from Middle English bar "bare" (see bare (adj.); in this case "mere") + last "a load, burden," from Proto-Germanic *hlasta-, from PIE root *klā- "to spread out flat" (see lade). Or borrowed from identical terms in North Sea Germanic and Scandinavian (compare Old Danish barlast, 14c.). "Mere" because not carried for commercial purposes. Dutch balg-last "ballast," literally "belly-load," is a folk-etymology corruption.

bareback (adj.)

"riding or performing on an unsaddled ('bare-backed') horse," 1560s, from bare (adj.) + back (n.).

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updated on March 31, 2017

Definitions of bare from WordNet

bare (adj.)

lacking in magnitude or quantity;

a bare livelihood

Synonyms: scanty / spare

bare (adj.)

completely unclothed;

bare bodies

Synonyms: au naturel / naked / nude

bare (adj.)

apart from anything else; without additions or modifications;

only the bare facts

Synonyms: mere / simple

bare (adj.)

just barely adequate or within a lower limit;

a bare majority

Synonyms: marginal

bare (adj.)

lacking its natural or customary covering;

a bare hill

bare feet

bare (adj.)

lacking a surface finish such as paint;

bare wood

Synonyms: unfinished

bare (adj.)

providing no shelter or sustenance;

bare rocky hills

Synonyms: barren / bleak / desolate / stark

bare (adj.)

having everything extraneous removed including contents;

the cupboard was bare

the bare walls

Synonyms: stripped

bare (adj.)

lacking embellishment or ornamentation;

Synonyms: plain / spare / unembellished / unornamented

bare (adj.)

not having a protective covering;

a bare blade

Synonyms: unsheathed

bare (v.)

lay bare;

bare your feelings

bare your breasts

bare (v.)

make public;

Synonyms: publicize / publicise / air

bare (v.)

lay bare;

Synonyms: denude / denudate / strip

From wordnet.princeton.edu, not affiliated with etymonline.

Dictionary entries near bare

barbiturate

Barcelona

bard

bardic

bardolatry

bare

bareback

barefaced

barefoot

bare-handed

bare-headed