near
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- close, adjacent, adjoining, nearby, neighbouring
- forthcoming, approaching, imminent, impending, in the offing, looming, nigh, upcoming

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Antonyms: far
Contrasted words: alter, change, modify, vary, differ
Related Idioms: close to, hard by, within earshot, within reach, within sight
Related Words: equal, match, rival, touch

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English Thesaurus: close, shut, slam, draw the curtains, put the lid on something, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. near¹ S1 W1 /nɪə $ nɪr/ adverb, preposition

1. SHORT DISTANCE AWAY only a short distance from a person or thing ⇒ close, nearby:
They live near London.
I’m sure they live somewhere near here.
They moved house to be nearer the school.
near to especially British English:
a hotel near to the beach
She told the children not to go near the canal.
I’m warning you – don’t come any nearer!
We heard voices as we drew near the village.
GRAMMAR
The form near is not often used as an adverb without to, except in the phrase quite near:
The school is quite near.
However, the comparative nearer is often used as an adverb:
The sound got nearer and nearer.
► Do not say 'near from something'. Use to after near.

2. SHORT TIME BEFORE soon before a particular time or event:
I didn’t remember to phone until near the end of the week.
near to especially British English:
I’ll give you a ring a bit nearer to Christmas.
They should send us more details nearer the time of the concert.

3. ALMOST DOING SOMETHING almost doing something or almost in a particular state:
The work is now near completion.
A lot of the women were near tears.
We are no nearer an agreement than we were six months ago.
near to
He was near to panic as he scrambled out of the building.
She was near to crying.
He seemed to know that he was near to death.

4. AMOUNT OR LEVEL almost at a particular amount or level:
Inflation is now near 10%.
He looked nearer fifty than forty.
near to
Unemployment is now near to its all-time low.
Strawberries are near the top of the list.

5. SIMILAR if something is near something else, it is similar to it:
His story was near enough the truth for people to believe it.
near to
They say that love is very near to hate.
It may not be an exact replica but it’s pretty damn near.

6. near perfect/impossible etc almost perfect, impossible etc:
a near impossible task

7. draw near if an event is drawing near, it is nearly time for it to happen:
The day of his interview was drawing near.

8. (as) near as damn it British English spoken used to say that something is very nearly true or correct:
The repairs will cost us £1000, as near as damn it.

9. near enough British English used to say that something is nearly true or correct:
It’s eleven o'clock, near enough.
All three car parks were full, near enough.

10. nowhere near/not anywhere near used before an adjective or adverb to say that something is definitely not true:
That’s nowhere near enough money!
The job wasn’t anywhere near finished.

11. not come near somebody/something if one person or thing does not come near another one, it is not at all as good as the other one:
None of the other word processing programs comes near this one.

12. somebody will not go near somebody/something if someone will not go near a person or thing, they dislike or are frightened of them and will not speak to the person or use the thing:
He refused to go near a doctor.
He made up his mind never to go near a motorcycle again.

13. so near and yet so far used to emphasize that someone very nearly achieved or got something

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. near² S2 W3 adjective

1. only a short distance away from someone or something ⇒ close, nearby:
It’s a beautiful house but it’s 20 miles away from the nearest town.
We can meet at the pub or in the restaurant, whichever’s nearer for you.
GRAMMAR
The form near is not used with this meaning before a noun. Use nearby instead:
a nearby park
However, the superlative nearest is often used before a noun:
They headed for the nearest beach.

2. a near disaster/collapse etc almost a disaster, collapse etc:
The election was a near disaster for the Conservative party.

3. the nearest thing/equivalent to something the thing you have that is most like a particular type of thing:
He’s the nearest thing to a father I’ve got.

4. in the near future soon:
They promised to contact us again in the near future.

5. be a near thing British English
a) if something you succeed in doing is a near thing, you manage to succeed but you nearly failed:
They won the championship, but it was a near thing.
b) used to say that you just managed to avoid a dangerous or unpleasant situation:
That was a near thing – that truck was heading straight for us.

6. near miss
a) when a bomb, plane, car etc nearly hits something but does not:
a near miss between two passenger aircraft over the airport
b) a situation in which something almost happens, or someone almost achieves something

7. to the nearest £10/hundred etc an amount to the nearest £10, hundred etc is the number nearest to it that can be divided by £10, a hundred etc:
Give me the car mileage to the nearest thousand.

8.
a) near relative/relation a relative who is very closely related to you such as a parent:
The death of a near relative is a terrible trauma for a child.
b) sb’s nearest and dearest someone’s family – used humorously

9. [only before noun, no comparative]
a) used to describe the side of something that is closest to where you are:
the near bank of the river
b) British English used when talking about the parts of a vehicle to mean the one that is closest to the side of the road when you drive Antonym : off:
The headlight on the near side isn’t working.
⇒ nearly
—nearness noun [uncountable]

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

III. near³ verb written

1. [transitive] to come closer to a place Synonym : approach:
She began to feel nervous as she neared the house.
The ship was nearing the harbour.

2. [transitive] to come closer to being in a particular state:
The work is nearing completion.
He’s 55 now, and nearing retirement.

3. [transitive] to come closer to a particular time:
He was nearing the end of his stay in India.

4. [intransitive] if a time nears, it gets closer and will come soon:
He got more and more nervous as the day of his departure neared.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

near
adjective
1.
BAD: He decided to visit a friend who lived very near from where he was at that moment.
GOOD: He decided to visit a friend who lived very near (to) where he was at that moment.

Usage Note:
near or near to (NOT near from ): 'The post office is near (to) the bank.' 'If we moved to Dallas, we would be nearer to my parents.'

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2.
BAD: I went near to the girl and told her my name.
GOOD: I went up to the girl and told her my name.

Usage Note:
See note at TO 2 (to)

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3.
BAD: I sometimes meet friends in a near restaurant.
GOOD: I sometimes meet friends in a nearby restaurant.
BAD: I ran to the telephone box which was near to call an ambulance.
GOOD: I ran to the telephone box nearby to call an ambulance.

Usage Note:
To say that something is only a short distance from a place, use nearby : 'I stopped at one of the nearby cottages and asked the way.' 'It's very convenient having a supermarket nearby.'

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

close to stop being open, or to make something stop being open. You use close and shut especially about your eyes, your mouth, a door, a window, or a container:
Can I close the window?
Her eyes slowly closed.
He closed the door gently, so as not to wake the children.
shut to close something . Shut sometimes has a feeling of doing something quickly and firmly, whereas close sounds more careful:
He shut the door with a loud bang.
Shut your eyes and go to sleep.
slam to close a door or lid quickly and noisily, especially because you are angry:
She left the room, slamming the door behind her.
draw the curtains to close curtains by pulling them across a window:
The curtains were still drawn at ten o'clock in the morning.
put the lid on something to close a container by putting a lid onto it:
Did you put the lid on the cookie jar?
seal to close something so that no air or water can get in or out:
In this experiment, the chamber must be completely sealed.
take/get a close look
She moved forward to take a close look at the painting.
keep a close eye/watch on somebody/something (=watch someone or something carefully)
They have to keep a close eye on their finances.
a close examination
A closer examination of the facts soon solved the mystery.
a close study
Their research involved a close study of two communities.
close attention
You will lose weight if you combine exercise with close attention to your diet.
close scrutiny (=careful and thorough examination of someone or something)
The investigation included close scrutiny of the images on CCTV.
close inspection (=looking at someone or something in detail)
Closer inspection revealed that the rocks were from an earlier period.
close supervision (=constantly making sure that someone does things in the correct way)
Initially there will be close supervision of the trainee.
similar adjective almost the same:
Jo said she’d had a similar experience.
The colours are very similar, but I like this one best.
like preposition similar to something or someone else:
It tastes a little like chicken.
She still looks like a teenager.
alike adjective [not before noun] very similar - used especially about the way people look or behave:
She and her sister look alike.
Lawyers are all alike - I don’t trust them.
much the same very similar:
The glass is still made in much the same way as it was 100 years ago.
People are much the same, wherever you go.
She still looks very much the same.
identical adjective exactly the same:
The two computers were identical in design.
identical names
matching adjective having the same colour, style, pattern etc as something else - used about clothes or furniture that you wear or use together:
She wore matching silver shoes and handbag.
a dining table and matching chairs
akin to something formal fairly similar to something:
These dialects are akin to Arabic, though different in several respects.
near only a short distance from something or someone:
I live near Salzburg in Austria.
If we moved to Dallas, we’d be near my parents.
not far (away) not a long distance away – used when saying that a place is near enough to be easy to get to:
The station’s not far away from here.
nearby near here or near a particular place:
Is there a post office nearby?
A group of reporters were waiting nearby.
within walking distance (of something) easy to walk to from somewhere, or near enough to something for you to walk there:
There’s a good school within walking distance.
The house is within walking distance of shopping facilities.
be convenient for something British English, be convenient to something American English to be near a place that people want to get to, so that the place is easy to reach:
The area is very convenient for Gatwick airport.
I want a hotel that’s convenient for the city centre.
locally in or near the area where you are or the area you are talking about:
I prefer to buy fruit and vegetables that are grown locally.
around here (also round here British English) spoken in the general area near here:
Parking is impossible around here.
Is there a garage round here?
in the neighbourhood British English, in the neighborhood American English living or existing in the area where you are or the area you are talking about:
We grew up knowing all the other kids in the neighbourhood.
There’s very little crime in the neighborhood.
in the vicinity formal in the area around and near a particular place – used especially in news reports:
A white van was seen in the vicinity at the time the murder took place.
neighbouring British English, neighboring American English used about towns, countries etc that are very near a particular place:
discussions between Egypt and neighbouring states
The rioting quickly spread to neighbouring areas.
start up/boot up to make a computer start working:
I’m having problems starting up my computer.
log on/in to start using a computer system by typing your name and password:
He logged on and read his emails.
click on something to press a button on a computer mouse to choose a program, file etc from the screen:
When you click on the link, it sends you to the company’s website.
install to add new software to a computer so that the software is ready to be used:
All users should install anti-virus software.
download to move information, pictures, or music from the Internet onto your computer:
You can download MP3 files.
upload to move information, pictures, or music from your computer to a different computer across the Internet:
Sites such as YouTube allow you to upload your own videos.
open to make a file or program ready to use:
Open a new file and type in the information.
scroll up/down to move information on a computer screen up or down so that you can read it:
Scroll down to read the questions and answers.
enter to type information into a computer:
The program requires you to enter a password.
delete to remove information from a computer:
I’ve deleted his email.
When you delete a file, it first gets moved to the recycle bin.
cut and paste to remove information from one place and put it in another place:
Tutors are looking out for students who cut and paste their essays from the Internet.
save to make a computer keep the work that you have done on it:
Make sure you save any work you do before you shut the computer down.
close to stop having a file or program ready to use:
To close the window, click on the ‘X’ in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
log off/out to stop using a computer system by giving it particular instructions:
I get an error message when I log off.
shut down to make a computer stop working:
Employees should shut their computers down at the end of each day.
restart/reboot to make a computer start working again:
Wait a few minutes before rebooting your computer.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

near only a short distance from something or someone:
I live near Salzburg in Austria.
If we moved to Dallas, we’d be near my parents.
close very near something or someone, or almost touching them:
The hotel is close to the beach.
Nancy came and sat close beside me on the bed.
not far (away) not a long distance away – used when saying that a place is near enough to be easy to get to:
The station’s not far away from here.
nearby near here or near a particular place:
Is there a post office nearby?
A group of reporters were waiting nearby.
within walking distance (of something) easy to walk to from somewhere, or near enough to something for you to walk there:
There’s a good school within walking distance.
The house is within walking distance of shopping facilities.
be convenient for something British English, be convenient to something American English to be near a place that people want to get to, so that the place is easy to reach:
The area is very convenient for Gatwick airport.
I want a hotel that’s convenient for the city centre.
locally in or near the area where you are or the area you are talking about:
I prefer to buy fruit and vegetables that are grown locally.
around here (also round here British English) spoken in the general area near here:
Parking is impossible around here.
Is there a garage round here?
in the neighbourhood British English, in the neighborhood American English living or existing in the area where you are or the area you are talking about:
We grew up knowing all the other kids in the neighbourhood.
There’s very little crime in the neighborhood.
in the vicinity formal in the area around and near a particular place – used especially in news reports:
A white van was seen in the vicinity at the time the murder took place.
neighbouring British English, neighboring American English used about towns, countries etc that are very near a particular place:
discussions between Egypt and neighbouring states
The rioting quickly spread to neighbouring areas.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

near
nɪə
See: far and near

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲