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Glite Dictionary
eye gunk

eye gunk

1 8.2
A sticky crust that forms in the corners of the eyes after sleep
  • noun
  • Informal
translation icon : moco ocular
  • My cat often has eye gunk after a long nap.

Examples

  • After sleeping all night, I noticed some eye gunk in the corner of my eyes when I woke up.

  • Every morning, she carefully cleans the eye gunk that collects while she sleeps.

  • Doctors say eye gunk can sometimes indicate an infection if it changes color.

  • She wiped the eye gunk away from her baby's lashes gently.

  • When I woke up, I found some eye gunk in the corners of my eyes.

  • I woke up with eye gunk in the corners of my eyes.

  • He always complains about waking up with eye gunk blocking his vision.

Synonyms

gunk
vseye gunk
15 4.6

Thick sticky stuff that is dirty or unpleasant

is a sticky crust that forms at the corners of the lids after sleep

How Much

eye gunk
  • Informal
1 8.2
tears
10 1.0

Surface Forms

eye gunk singular
eye gunks plural

Morphology

eye + gunk

The meaning is directly compositional: 'eye' (the organ) + 'gunk' (a sticky, unpleasant substance) yields a sticky/crusty substance associated with the eyes. This is a literal, concrete noun-noun compound following common English compounding patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Eye gunk refers to the sticky, crusty bits that collect in the corners of your eyes while you sleep. The image of eye plus messy gunk makes it easy to remember it means the small sticky crust left 'after sleep'.