near

Universal Words adjective, adverb, preposition, verb adjective (nearer, nearest) HELPNOTE In senses 1 to 4 near and nearer do not usually go before a noun; nearest can go either before or after a noun. 1 a short distance away SYNCLOSE: His house is very near. * Where's the nearest bank? -< NEXT 2 a short time away in the future: The conflict is unlikely to be resolved in the near future (= very soon). 3 coming next after sb/sth: She has a 12-point lead over her nearest rival. 4 (usually nearest) similar; most similar: He was the nearest thing to (= the person most like) a father she had ever had. seealsoO.N.O. 5 [onlybeforenoun] (no comparative or superlative) close to being sb/sth: The election proved to be a near disaster for the party. * a near impossibility / certainty 6 ~ relative / relation used to describe a close family connection: Only the nearest relatives were present at the funeral. nearness noun [U]: the nearness of death IDIOMS your nearest and dearest (informal) your close family and friends a near thing a situation in which you are successful, but which could also have ended badly: Phew! That was a near thing! It could have been a disaster. * We won in the end but it was a near thing. to the nearest... followed by a number when counting or measuring approximately: We calculated the cost to the nearest 50 dollars. adverb (nearer, nearest) 1 at a short distance away: A bomb exploded somewhere near. * She took a step nearer. 2 a short time away in the future: The exams are drawing near. 3 (especially in compounds) almost: a near-perfect performance * I'm as near certain as can be. IDIOMS as near as as accurately as: There were about 3000 people there, as near as I could judge. as near as damn it / dammit (BrE, spoken) used to say that an amount is so nearly correct that the difference does not matter: It will cost ｣350, or as near as dammit. near enough (BrE, spoken) used to say that sth is so nearly true that the difference does not matter: We've been here twenty years, near enough. not anywhere near / nowhere near far from; not at all: The job doesn't pay anywhere near enough for me. so near and yet so far used to comment on sth that was almost successful but in fact failed moreatPRETTYadv. preposition (also near to, nearer )to(, nearest )to() HELPNOTE Near to is not usually used before the name of a place, person, festival, etc. 1 at a short distance away from sb/sth: Do you live near here? * Go and sit nearer (to) the fire. -> NEXT 2 a short period of time from sth: My birthday is very near Christmas. * I'll think about it nearer (to) the time (= when it is just going to happen). 3 used before a number to mean 'approximately', 'just below or above': Share prices are near their record high of last year. * Profits fell from $11 million to nearer $8 million. 4 similar to sb/sth in quality, size, etc: Nobody else comes near her in intellect. * He's nearer 70 than 60. * This colour is nearest (to) the original. 5 ~ (doing) sth close to a particular state: a state near (to) death * She was near to tears (= almost crying). * We came near to being killed. IDIOMS see HANDn., HEART, MARKn. verb (rather formal) to come close to sth in time or space SYNAPPROACH [VN] The project is nearing completion. * She was nearing the end of her life. * He must be nearing 40. * We neared the top of the hill. * [V] As Christmas neared, the children became more and more excited. ______________________________ WHICHWORD? near / close The adjectives near and close are often the same in meaning, but in some phrases only one of them may be used: the near future * a near neighbour * a near miss * a close contest * a close encounter * a close call. Close is more often used to describe a relationship between people: a close friend * close family * close links. You do not usually use near in this way. ______________________________