clear 1 S1 W1 / klɪə $ klɪr / 形容词 ( comparative clearer , superlative clearest )

1 easy to understand expressed in a simple and direct way so that people understand → clarity , clearly :

clear instructions

The question wasn’t very clear.

It’s the clearest guide I’ve used.

clear about

The school is clear about its policy on bullying.

clear about what/when/how etc

Be very clear about what jobs should be completed, and by when.

clear on

The rules are quite clear on the point.

clear to

It was clear to him that Tolkien was a literary genius.

make something clear

The bishop made his views clear in a letter to the publisher.

How can you make the meaning clearer?

make it clear that

Make it clear that you will not take sides.

absolutely/abundantly clear

Can I make it absolutely clear that we did not intend this to happen?

Perhaps I tried to cover too much and didn’t make myself clear (= express myself well ) .

If you don’t understand, it’s best to say so and get things clear .

If I catch you smoking again, you’re grounded. Do I make myself clear (= used when you are angry ) ?

clear picture/idea (= a good understanding )

The report gave a clear picture of the property’s condition.

He writes crystal clear (= very easy to understand ) prose.

2 impossible to doubt impossible to doubt, question, or make a mistake about → clearly :

clear evidence of guilt

They won by a clear majority.

it is clear whether/why/how etc

It’s not clear whether he shares her views.

it is clear (that)

It’s clear that the drug does benefit some patients.

When it became clear that I was pregnant, he left me.

clear case/example of something

a clear case of sexual discrimination

3 sure about something feeling certain that you know or understand something → clearly

clear about/on

Are you all clear now about what you have to do?

clear whether/what/how etc

I’m still not really clear how this machine works.

Let me get this clear – you hadn’t seen her in three days?

a clearer understanding of the issues

4 thinking able to think sensibly and quickly → clarity , clearly :

She felt that her thinking was clearer now.

In the morning, with a clear head , she’d tackle the problem.

5 substance/liquid easy to see through, rather than coloured or dirty 同义词 transparent 反义词 cloudy , opaque :

clear glass bottles

a crystal clear mountain lake

6 weather clean and fresh, without clouds or mist :

a clear June morning

The skies were clear and blue.

7 eyes healthy, very pure in colour, and without any redness :

clear blue eyes

8 skin smooth and without any red spots :

a clear complexion

9 easy to see having details, edges, lines etc that are easy to see, or shapes that are easy to recognize → clarity :

a TV with a clear picture and high-quality sound

10 easy to hear easy to hear, and therefore easy to understand → clarity , clearly :

a clear speaking voice

The radio reception isn’t very clear.

It’s a good recording; the sound is as clear as a bell (= very clear ) .

11 after tax a clear amount of profit, wages etc is what is left after taxes have been paid on it 同义词 net :

I get £200 a week clear.

Sam makes a clear $90,000 per year.

12 a clear conscience the knowledge that you have done the right thing and should not feel guilty :

I don’t think I could vote for him with a clear conscience.

She had done what she could and her conscience was clear.

13 period of time without any planned activities or events :

Next Monday is clear; how about ten o’clock?

14 not busy complete or whole :

Allow three clear days for delivery.

15 not blocked/covered not covered or blocked by anything that stops you from doing or seeing what you want :

The roads were fairly clear this morning.

clear view/look

From the top floor you get a clear view of the bay.

clear of

To prevent fires, the sides of the roads are kept clear of underbrush.

16 see your way clear (to doing something) informal to have the necessary time or willingness to be able to do something :

We expect good results soon, if the board can see its way clear to continuing funding the project.

17 be clear of something to not be touching something, or to be past someone or something :

Wait to cross until the street is clear of cars.

The curtains should be a couple of inches clear of the floor.

18 as clear as mud spoken used humorously to say that something is very difficult to understand → all clear , → the coast is clear at coast 1 ( 2 )

— clearness 名词 [不可数名词]

COLLOCATIONS

动词

make something clear Children may have difficulty in making their feelings clear.

get something clear (= understand something properly ) I was trying to get the idea clear in my mind.

副词

absolutely/perfectly clear His answer was perfectly clear.

crystal clear (= extremely clear ) The instructions on the packet are crystal clear.

abundantly clear formal (= extremely clear ) By July the scale of the problem had become abundantly clear.

not entirely clear Sam’s reasons for leaving were not entirely clear.

名词

a clear picture/idea (= a good understanding ) Some work experience should give you a clear idea of what the job involves.

短语

make it clear that The tone of her voice made it clear that she was very angry.

make yourself clear (= express yourself in a way that is easy to understand ) Please tell me if I’m not making myself clear.

be far from clear/be by no means clear (= be very unclear ) The directions she gave me were far from clear.

THESAURUS Meaning 5

easy to see through

clear easy to see through, rather than coloured or dirty : The table top is a piece of clear glass. | a clear liquid | The water was so clear that you could see down to the bottom of the lake.

transparent clear - used especially about materials and solid things. Transparent is a little more formal than clear : Fill a transparent plastic bottle with water. | a piece of transparent film | Melt 2 ounces of butter in a large frying pan, and cook the onions until they are almost transparent.

see-through made of a very thin material that you can see through - used especially about women’s clothes : She wore a black see-through dress.

limpid literary clear - used especially about water or other liquids . This is a very formal word which is used in novels and literature : limpid pools | She gave her a golden flask of limpid olive oil.

difficult to see through

opaque difficult to see through : The shower has an opaque glass door.