clear English · revision 3596

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c. 1280|origins=la clārus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /klɪə/, US /klɪr/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|cler]], [[bor|fro|cler|t=clear, bright, shining]] (modern French [[m|fr|clair]]),^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(SOED 2002) from [[la|clārus|t=clear, loud; bright, distinct; illustrious]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988)^(AHD 2000) which is related to [[m|la|clāmāre|t=to cry out, proclaim]] and [[m|la|calāre|t=to call]].^(Barnhart 1988)^(Klein 1966)^(MWU 2024) Etymonline traces it to [[ine-pro|*kele-|t=to shout]], and explains the shift from sound to light by an identification of the spreading of sound with the spreading of light, comparing English [[loud]] used of colours.^(Etymonline) It is related to [[claim]], [[clarify]], [[clarity]], [[declare]], [[claret]] and [[clarion]].^(Klein 1966)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Bright, shining, giving light: about 1280^(Barnhart 1988) or 1297.^(OED 1989)^(HTOED) By about 1300 it also meant transparent, free from impurities, and morally pure.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Of the weather, “free from cloud and mist”, is from 1297.^(OED 1989)^(HTOED) Of the mind, “discerning, sharp”, is from 1340.^(HTOED) The adverb, “completely, quite”, is from about 1300,^(Etymonline) and “plainly, distinctly” from the early 14th century;^(Etymonline) the sense survives in ''clear across''.^(SOED 2002) The verb meant “to enlighten” about 1380, in Chaucer's ''Boethius'',^(Barnhart 1988) and by the late 14th century also “to cleanse, clarify” and “to prove innocent”.^(Etymonline) “To free from obstructions” is from the 1520s, “to clear land of trees” from the 1690s, and “to leap clear over” from 1791.^(Etymonline) In banking, “to settle accounts through a clearing house” is a later sense.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002) The noun ''in the clear'' is recorded from 1715, first meaning “in interior extent” and figuratively “free of suspicion” from 1928.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) A ''clearing'' in a forest is from 1678, in American English,^(Barnhart 1988) and ''clearance'' from before 1563.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1280 – bright.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1297 – of weather, clear.^(OED 1989)^(HTOED)

+ * c. 1300 – adverb, completely.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1340 – of the mind, sharp.^(HTOED)

+ * c. 1380 – verb, to enlighten (Chaucer).^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1520s – verb, to free from obstructions.^(Etymonline)

+ * before 1563 – ''clearance''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1678 – ''clearing'', a cleared space in a forest.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1715 – ''in the clear''.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1791 – verb, to leap over.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Free from clouds or haze: ''a clear day''.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # [[transparent|alt=Transparent]]; free from anything that clouds or dims.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # Free from flaws or impurities.^(AHD)

+ # Free from obstruction; open.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # Easily understood; [[evident]].^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # Easily seen or heard; distinct.^(AHD)

+ # Thinking or perceiving easily; [[lucid]].^(AHD)^(HTOED)

+ # Free from guilt or doubt.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # Without deductions; [[net]].^(AHD)

+

+ ===Adverb===

+ # Clearly, distinctly.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # Out of the way: ''stand clear''.^(AHD)

+ # All the way; completely: ''clear to the end''.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To make or become clear or bright.^(AHD)^(OED 1989)

+ # To rid of obstructions or of unwanted things.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To free from blame or doubt.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # To pass over or by without touching.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To approve or be approved: ''cleared for take-off''.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # Of a cheque, to pass through the banking system.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A clear or open space.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[clearable]]

+ * [[clearer]]

+ * [[clearly]]

+ * [[clearness]]

+ * [[clear-cut]]

+ * [[clear-eyed]]

+ * [[clear-headed]]

+ * [[clear-sighted]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[clarity]]

+ * [[claim]]

+ * [[clarify]]

+ * [[declare]]

+ * [[claret]]

+ * [[clarion]]

+ * [[clairvoyance]]

+ * [[chiaroscuro]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ The American Heritage Dictionary distinguishes ''clear'', ''limpid'', ''lucid'', ''pellucid'' and ''transparent'', all meaning “not cloudy or opaque”.^(AHD)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}