Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Popular Searches
on Ask.com
Nearby Entries
bleaker - 2 dictionary results

bleak

1  [bleek]
Use bleaker in a Sentence
–adjective, -er, -est.
1. bare, desolate, and often windswept: a bleak plain.
2. cold and piercing; raw: a bleak wind.
3. without hope or encouragement; depressing; dreary: a bleak future.
Origin:
1300–50; ME bleke pale, b. variants bleche (OE blǣc) and blake (OE blāc); both c. ON bleikr, G bleich; akin to bleach

Related forms:
bleakish, adjective
bleakly, adverb
bleakness, noun

Synonyms:
3. See austere.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To bleaker
bleak 1   (blēk)   
adj.   bleak·er, bleak·est
    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.

[Middle English bleik, pale, from Old Norse bleikr, white; see bhel-1 in Indo-European roots.]
bleak'ly adv., bleak'ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see bleaker on Thesaurus | Reference