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near

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adjective, adverb, preposition British English pronunciation: near /nɪə(r)/
Near can be used in the following ways:
as a preposition: I lived near the school. ♦ I'll write and let you know nearer the time.
as an adverb: Come nearer, and I'll tell you the whole story.
as an adjective: I went into the nearest room. ♦ A climb in the mountains led to near disaster.
in the preposition phrase near to: Pull your chair nearer to the table.
 
Other entries for this word
  1. 1
    close to someone or something

    A group of students were standing near the entrance.

    The tornado destroyed two houses near Tulsa.

    The shops are quite near.

    I slept in the bed nearest the door.

    They live in a small cottage 15 miles from the nearest village.

    near to:

    Rosa moved a little nearer to the fire.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of near
    1. a.
      used for referring to the side of something that is the closest to where you are

      I got into the near side of the bed.

      Thesaurus entry for this meaning of near
    See also  nearside
  2. 2
    getting close to a particular state or situation
    near to:

    Julian was near to panic as he suddenly realized that he was trapped.

    People near to retirement need to know their pension funds are sufficient.

    near to doing something:

    They are near to solving the puzzle.

    There were rumours that the 66-year-old leader was near death.

  3. 3
    not long before a particular time or event

    It was nearer three than two o'clock when he finally arrived.

    I had no intention of making any decision until much nearer the time.

    The incident occurred near the end of the war.

    draw near:

    The date of the election was drawing near.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of near
  4. 4
    very similar to something

    What he's saying now is near the truth, but it's still not accurate.

    near to:

    My feelings were nearer to despair than disappointment.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of near
  5. 5
    only a little less than a particular amount or number

    The temperature that day was near 30 degrees.

    The loss was near 15 per cent for the year.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of near

phrases

derived word

nearness

noun [uncountable]

There was a lot of mist around because of the garden's nearness to the river.

This is the British English definition of near. View American English definition of near.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to American English.

View the pronunciation for near.

 

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