Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
unwinking

unwinking

8.1
A steady look with eyes that do not blink
  • adjective
  • /ʌnˈwɪŋkɪŋ/
translation icon : inmutable
  • She maintained an unwinking stare during the tense negotiation, showing her determination.

Examples

  • Engles pointed to the tiny, unwinking red lights in the corners of the ceiling.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • The owl sat on the branch, its unwinking eyes fixed on the ground, waiting for its next meal.

  • Sprinkled road signs offering unwinking promises of a constancy she had always relied upon.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The soldier had an unwinking gaze as he watched the horizon, prepared for anything.

Synonyms

unblinking
vsunwinking
7 6.7

Not showing any emotion or fear in difficult situations

is a steady unflinching gaze that can be literal or figurative
untwinkling
vsunwinking
  • Archaic
9.3

A steady look in which the eyes do not blink or move

is steady and unflinching rather than strictly motionless

Antonyms

to blinking
1.0

To close and open the eyes quickly and repeatedly

How Steady

unwavering
22 5.8
unwinking
8.1
fixed
1.0
steady
186 1.3

Surface Forms

unwinking positive

Morphology

unwinking = winking (transparent) = un + wink + ing

Formed by the productive prefix 'un-' applied to 'winking'; the meaning is directly 'not blinking' and can be inferred by learners who know 'wink' and 'un-'.

Etymology

Unwinking comes from un- meaning 'not' and wink meaning 'to close one eye quickly', so it literally means 'not blinking'. Think of a cat or a portrait that stares without moving its eyes, and you can see why unwinking describes a steady, unflinching gaze.