blank

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
blank/blaŋk/
adjective
  • 1 not marked or decorated; bare, empty, or plain.
  • 2 not comprehending or reacting: a blank look.
  • 3 complete; absolute: a blank refusal to discuss the issue.
  • 4 used euphemistically in place of an obscene word.
noun
  • 1 a space left to be filled in a document.
  • 2 (also blank cartridge) a cartridge containing gunpowder but no bullet.
  • 3 an empty space or period of time: my mind was a total blank.
  • 4 an object with no mark or design on it, in particular a roughly cut disc or block intended for stamping or finishing.
  • 5 a dash written instead of a word or letter, especially to avoid using an obscene word.
verb
  • 1 make blank or empty.
  • 2 Brit. informal deliberately ignore (someone).
  • 3 N. Amer. defeat without allowing the opponent to score.
  • 4 cut (a metal blank).
– phrases
draw a blank elicit no successful response.
– derivatives
blankly adverb,
blankness noun.
– origin ME (in the sense ‘white, colourless’): from OFr. blanc ‘white’, ult. of Gmc origin.
'blank' also found in these Oxford entries:

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