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Glite Dictionary
deep-set eye

deep-set eye

2 4.9
An eye set far back in the head that makes the eye area look deep and dark
  • noun
  • /dipˈsɛt aɪ/
translation icon : ojo hundido
  • Song Lee saw a quiet strength in the bridge of Pei's nose, along with intelligence in the deep-set eyes.
  • nose and deep-set eyes
  • deep-set eyes and high cheekbones
  • dark, deep-set eyes

The men had deep set eyes and thick dark beards.

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Examples

  • A heavy brow rose up over deep-set eyes.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Five-eight, wiry, with a round face and deep-set eyes.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • And then you've got kind of deep set eyes where they go way back into your head.

  • The men had deep set eyes and thick dark beards.

    Kings and Generals

  • His face was broad, too: a heavy jaw with wide, thin lips and small, deep-set eyes.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Pang felt his face burning again, and he dropped his gaze from the ancient deep-set eyes.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • I looked at Tony, at the sharp line of his jaw, his brows bristling over his deep-set eyes.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Uncle Tikhon, a tall peasant with a fat face and small, drowsy, deep-set eyes, sat behind the counter.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • His gray hair grew thickly back from a wide forehead, and dark, deep-set eyes regarded me openly, seeming to approve of what he saw.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • His face was broad, too: a heavy jaw with wide, thin lips and small, deep-set eyes.

Antonyms

starting
7.5

Having eyes wide and sticking out because of fear or surprise

Surface Forms

deep-set eye singular
deep-set eyes plural

Morphology

deep-set + eye

The meaning is directly compositional: 'deep-set' describes a sunken or recessed position and 'eye' names the organ, so a learner who knows both words can infer an eye positioned back in the skull. This is a straightforward adjective+noun descriptive pattern common across languages and follows standard English modification rules, making it immediately comprehensible to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Deep-set eye comes from a simple picture: the deep part shows the eye is placed far back and the set part shows it sits down in the face, in its socket under the eyebrow. That's why the phrase describes an eye 'positioned further back' and often 'in shadow', which can make a person look serious or intense.