Standard Lemma guide

nearest

adj · prep · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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Received-Pronunciation: /ˈnɪəɹɪst/
General-American: /ˈnɪɹɪst/
General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET: N IH1 R AH0 S T Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

adj

Meaning 1

superlative form of near: most near

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: form-of, superlative

Examples

Where is the nearest bus stop?
I calculated the cost to the nearest 50 dollars.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: closest

Antonyms: none provided

prep

Meaning 2

Closest to.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

Mercury is the planet nearest the Sun.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

adverb

Meaning 3

(superlative of `near' or `close') within the shortest distance

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

that was the time he came nearest to death

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: nighest, closest

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Word forms

Inflections and variants

No separate word forms were provided.

Word family

Derived and related words

Derived: crocodile nearest the canoe, nearest and dearest

Related: superlative

Spelling and sound

Hyphenation and homophones

Hyphenation: near·est

Semantic map

Other relationships

Sources

Where this information comes from

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Real reading context

Examples

Meaning relationships

Examples

Meaning relationships

Examples

Meaning relationships

nearest in complete knowledge articles