| blind spot (def. 4). |
| 1. | Anatomy. a small area on the retina that is insensitive to light due to the interruption, where the optic nerve joins the retina, of the normal pattern of light-sensitive rods and cones. |
| 2. | an area or subject about which one is uninformed, prejudiced, or unappreciative: I confess that operettas are my blind spot. |
| 3. | Radio. an area in which signals are weak and their reception poor. |
| 4. | Also called dead spot. any part of an auditorium, arena, or the like, in which a person is unable to see or hear satisfactorily. |
| 5. | an area to the side and slightly behind a driver's field of vision that is not reflected in the vehicle's rearview mirror. |
| dead spot n. A zone within the range of a radio transmitter where little or no radio signal can be received. |
A small region in the visual field (the area scanned by the eye) that cannot be seen. The blind spot corresponds to an area in the eye where the optic nerve enters the retina.
Note: In a general sense, the term is used to refer to an inability to see things that might be obvious to another observer: “He has a blind spot as far as his daughter's behavior is concerned.”
blind spot n.
See optic disk.
The area of blindness in the visual field corresponding to the optic disk. Also called physiologic scotoma, punctum cecum.
An area or facet of one's personality of which one remains ignorant or fails to gain understanding. Also called mental scotoma, scotoma.
blind spot  (blīnd) Pronunciation Key
The small region of the retina where fibers of the optic nerve emerge from the eyeball. The blind spot has no rods or cones, so no light or visual image can be transmitted. |