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Glite Dictionary
tunnel vision

tunnel vision

6 7.1
Loss of side vision so you can only see what is in front
  • noun
  • /ˈtʌnəl ˈvɪʒən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : visión de túnel
  • You only see so much, it's, it's like you got tunnel vision.
  • get tunnel vision
  • develop tunnel vision
  • people get tunnel vision

And one of the side effects of having major massive blood loss is you get tunnel vision.

Examples

  • The regulars here have tunnel vision; all they understand is dollar signs.

    Blog text (26)

  • I look at things with less tunnel vision than I used to.

    Academic text (2000)

  • I just, I just had tunnel vision and I just saw him.

  • Yes, yes, yes, God, talk about tunnel vision.

    The Zero Theorem (2013)

  • By about age 40, most have tunnel vision, although many may retain good central vision.

    Academic text (2003)

  • All of a sudden I started getting tunnel vision and I went to the doctor and I was shaking.

  • Whenever I work by myself for long stretches, I get tunnel vision.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Tunnel vision is the end result of retinitis pigmentosa.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Attention gets unfocused, people have trouble remembering, problem solving degrades, and tunnel vision sets in.

    Blog text (26)

  • As he stared at his computer screen for hours, he developed tunnel vision, unable to notice anything happening around him.

Synonyms

annular scotoma
vstunnel vision
  • Specialized
9.9

A ring of weak or missing vision that surrounds the center of what you see

loses peripheral vision so only the central field is seen

Antonyms

peripheral vision
11 4.5

Sight at the sides of what you are looking at

How Narrow

tunnel vision
  • Specialized
6 7.1

Surface Forms

tunnel vision singular
tunnel visions plural

Morphology

tunnel + vision

The meaning of a constricted field of sight follows directly from combining 'tunnel' (a narrow passage) with 'vision' (sight): the image of seeing through a tunnel clearly conveys loss of peripheral view. This literal image and its common metaphorical extension to a 'narrow focus' are cross-linguistically familiar, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will likely infer the meaning.

Etymology

The noun tunnel vision comes from the image of looking through a long, dark tunnel, where your vision is limited and you can only see what is straight ahead. That's why the term describes when you 'can only see the central part of your view' and lose sight at the sides.