to blur the line
6
6.7
- phrasal verb
:
difuminar la línea
- Look, I realize that this industry blurs the lines between journalist and fan.
- seeks to blur the line
- organization that effectively blurs the line
Well, as you know, I'm, I'm trying to blur the lines between those two things these days.
- Well, as you know, I'm, I'm trying to blur the lines between those two things these days.
- So intersex people who have either physical and or chromosomal characteristics that in some manner blur the line between male and female.
Examples
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We try to blur the line between real and and mechanical.
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Therefore, NATO and EU policy sought to blur the lines between members, potential future members, and partners.
Academic text (2008) -
We like to blur the line between the audience and the players.
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The Great Recession has dramatically blurred the lines between the middle class and people in poverty.
Blog text (32) -
Bringing science into a public-policy debate is risky, blurring the lines that separate it from politics.
Academic text (2010) -
From the very beginning, Iosepa was an enterprise that blurred the line between religion and commerce.
Academic text (2008) -
To further complicate things, many of our most cherished books, especially in the early grades, blur the line between genres.
Academic text (2012) -
Some commentators have expressed concern that these powers could blur the lines between social workers as enablers and protectors of individuals.
Academic text (2011) -
In the wake of the recent NSA data breach, private drone contractor Neil Wiston has come forward with more information on the CIA test program that blurs the line between contractors and the military.
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Pop art was all about blurring the line between fine art and everyday popular culture.
Synonyms
61
3.6
To make something hard to see or understand
Antonyms
How Distinct
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to make the distinction between two things less clear' is directly and compositionally derived from 'blur' (to render unclear) + 'line' (a division or boundary); a learner who knows both constituents can infer this sense. This metaphorical use (making a boundary indistinct) is common in English and parallels constructions in many other languages, so it is readily predictable for a B1 learner.
Etymology
The phrase blur the line makes you picture a clear line being blurred or smudged until it is hard to see. So, it means to make the difference between two things 'less clear'.