Stare v.

Pa. t. and pa. pple. stared. Also 6 stayre, staar. [OE. starian, corresp. to (M)LG., Du. staren, OHG. starên (MHG. starn), ON. stara (Norw. stara), f. OTeut. *staro- (see STAREBLIND a.).

  In mod.Ger. the vb. has disappeared, being merged in the cognate vb. starren (OHG. starrên) to be rigid; the sense ‘to look fixedly, stare’ being capable of being regarded as a particular application of the general meaning. A vb. of identical meaning, and prob. cognate, though the phonological relation is obscure, exists in several Teut. langs.: ON. stira (Da. stirre, Sw. stirra), mod.G. stieren.]

  1.  intr. To gaze fixedly and with eyes wide open. Said also of the eyes. Const. in mod. use chiefly at (also in indirect passive), in (a person’s face), and occas. after, into, through; formerly (now arch.) on, upon. Also with advs. about, around, or advb. phr. denoting direction.

  In modern use the verb ordinarily implies rudeness, or is otherwise disparaging; hence many of the older examples would now be differently expressed.

Beowulf, 1781. Þæt ic on þone hafelan heorodreoriʓne … eaʓum stariʓe.

c. 1000.  Ælfric, Lives Saints, xv. 199. Forðan þe se earn … mæʓ swyðost starian on þære sunnan leoman.

a. 1300.  Cursor M., 13557. Quen men him sagh þat kneu him are, Fast þai can on him to stare.

c. 1340.  Nominale (Skeat), 176. Homme doile guenyle, M. with ee starith.

13[?].  E. E. Allit. P., A. 149. Abowte me con I stote & stare To fynde a forþe. Ibid. (13[?]), B. 389. Summe styȝe to a stud & stared to þe heuen.

1362.  Langl., P. Pl., A. XII. 61. I stode stille in a stodie and stared a-bowte.

c. 1374.  Chaucer, Troylus, II. 1142. This Pandarus gan on here for to stare.

a. 1400–50.  Wars Alex., 263. He in his sege lened In stody still as a stane, & starid in hire face.

c. 1400.  Destr. Troy, 8627. He stode þus in stid, starit hym vpon.

1412.  Lydg., Troy Bk., 1337. Þei wern so rude to staren and to gase To gape & loke, as it wer on a mase.

c. 1430.  Hymns Virg. (1867), 37. Summe staren broode & moun not se.

c. 1440.  Promp. Parv., 472/2. Staryn, wythe brode eyne, patentibus oculis respicere.

1557.  Tottel’s Misc. (Arb.), 241. For had he come in golden garmentes bright, Or so as men mought haue starde on the sight.

1570.  Levins, Manip., 252/45. To stayre, aspicere, contemplare.

a. 1586.  Sidney, Arcadia, I. xiii. § 4. Standing upon his tip-toes, and staring as though he would have a mote pulled out of his eie.

1589.  Puttenham, Engl. Poesie, III. xxiv. (Arb.), 300. King Henry th’eight … could not abide to haue any man stare in his face.

1602.  Marston, Antonio’s Rev., IV. iii. Her bright eyes gan ope, And starde upon him.

1697.  Dryden, Virg. Past., VI. 34. He stares around, with stupid Eyes. Ibid., Georg., IV. 370. With hagger’d Eyes they stare, Lean are their Looks, and shagged is their Hair.

1703.  Cibber, She wou’d, etc. V. 68. How shall I be star’d at when I give an Account of this to my Father, or your Friends in Sevil?

1806.  H. Siddons, Maid, Wife, & Widow, I. 95. I sat for hours together staring on the fire.

1817.  Keats, Sonn., xi. Like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes He star’d at the Pacific.

1818.  Scott, Hrt. Midl., ix. There was … scarce a maiden on whom he did not stare.

1820.  W. Irving, Sketch Bk., I. 73. They … stared at him with fixed statue-like gaze.

1835.  Marryat, Jacob Faithful, xii. She’d a roguish eye, and liked to be stared at, as most pretty women do, because it flatters their vanities.

1848.  Dickens, Dombey, iv. By having stared for three or four days successively through every optical instrument in his shop.

1859.  Tennyson, Geraint & Enid, 267. Two wild men supporters of a shield, Painted, who stare at open space.

1859.  FitzGerald, Omar, xxiv. Alike for those who for To-day prepare, And those that after a To-morrow stare.

1865.  Livingstone, Zambesi, xvi. 326. They [the hippopotami] stare with peculiar stolid looks.

1878.  Miss Braddon, Eleanor’s Vict., i. A few hurried off to the Market-place, to stare at the Cathedral Church of Saint Jacques.

1880.  ‘Ouida,’ Moths, I. 21. And be kind enough not to stand here and stare; everybody is listening.

1907.  J. A. Hodges, Elem. Photogr. (ed. 6), 119. The sitter should never be allowed to stare into the lens.

  b.  colloquial phrases.

1694.  Motteux, Rabelais, V. ix. 41. Panurge star’d at him like a dead Pig.

1714.  Gay, What d’ye call it? I. i. His loving mother left him to my care Fine child, as like his dad as he could stare.

1796.  Jane Austen, Sense & Sens., xiii. Oh! yes; and as like him as she can stare.

1809.  Malkin, Gil Blas, X. x. (Rtldg.), 373. He stared like a stuck pig at my equipment!

  ¶ c.  In poetry used (on account of rhyme or alliteration) for: To look. Obs. Cf. STARE sb.² 1.

1390.  Gower, Conf., III. 7. Whanne I mai upon hire stare,… Myn herte is full of such gladnesse.

c. 1400.  Destr. Troy, 5551. Wo so staris on þis story, or stodis þerin, Take hede on þe harmys & the hard lures.

  d.  transf. and fig. Of things: To be obtrusively conspicuous. Also in obvious transferred uses with comparison of lights or windows to eyes.

1657.  Billingsly, Brachy-Martyrol., iii. 12. So said, thus rack’d, into a fire he’s thrown, And now his wasting bowels stared on The Tyrants face.

1825.  Lamb, Elia, Ser. II. Barbara S —. And then came staring upon her the figures of her little stockingless and shoeless sisters.

1863.  Cowden Clarke, Shaks. Char., iii. 84. Their subtleties of character stare out like the bones of a starved beast.

1895.  ‘Percy Hemingway,’ Out of Egypt, II. 175. One evening, as I stood watching a vessel in the harbour, that stared townwards with a hundred round unblinking eyes as it waited the approach of the great raft that moved lumberingly across the patch of purple into which the stars were grazing.

1909.  Bridges, Paraphr. Æn., VI. Poems (1913), 457. Right i’ the front stareth the columnar gate adamantine.

  2.  quasi-trans. with complement.

  a.  With adv., adj., or phrase expressing the result of staring at a person or thing; esp. in to stare (a person) out of countenance (see COUNTENANCE sb. 6 b).

1672.  Villiers (Dk. Buckhm.), Rehearsal, IV. i. (Arb.), 103. Who e’er to gulp one drop of this dares think I’l stare away his very pow’r to drink.

1719.  D’Urfey, Pills, III. 319. The … Stone … stares Deucalions … Boys, into … Pebbles.

1833.  Lytton, Godolphin, xxiii. She did not stare young men out of countenance.

1844.  Mrs. Browning, Poems, Dead Pan, x. Thou art staring the stars pale.

1857.  [see COUNTENANCE sb. 6 b].

  b.  To stare (a person) in the face [after the older phrase in LOOK v. 1 e]: to stare at (his) face; also fig. of a thing, to be glaringly obvious to, to force itself on the notice of.

1690.  Locke, Hum. Und., I. iii. § 13. Whether it be possible, for People … to offend against a Law … that stares them in the Face, whilst they are breaking it?

1692.  R. L’Estrange, Fables, cclxxx. 245. But to come now to the Ungrateful Point, the Bare Innuendo of it would stare so many People in the Face, that [etc.].

1698.  Fryer, Acc. E. India & P., 9. They staring one in the Face, and in the mean time … steal a Handkerchief.

1727.  Bolingbroke, Occas. Writer, ii. 44. This terrible Object stares our speculative Enquirer in the Face, and disturbs his Head.

1769.  Junius Lett., xix. 82. The contradiction was unexpectedly urged and stared him in the face.

1790.  W. Buchan, Dom. Med., 569. Few people will submit to the extirpation till death stares them in the face.

1817.  Ld. Ellenborough, in Maule & Selwyn’s Rep., VI. 316. When he knew himself insolvent, and when ruin and bankruptcy were staring him in the face.

1846.  Greener, Sci. Gunnery, 98. The mock sales … that stare us in the face at every turning.

1853.  Abp. Thomson, Laws of Thought, § 47. 93. A man stares his friend in the face without recognizing him.

1912.  Throne, 7 Aug., 205/1. To minimise the severity of the defeat which Ministers see staring them in the face.

  c.  To stare (a person) up and down: to survey with a stare from head to foot.

1889.  May Crommelin & J. M. Brown, Violet Vyvian, III. i. 6. She always stares me up and down at the meets.

1891.  ‘H. S. Merriman,’ Prisoners & Captives, II. 78. They are staring me up and down like a wild animal.

  3.  Used with implication of a mental state.

  † a.  To open the eyes wide in madness or fury; to glare. Often in alliterative phrases, e.g., scowl and stare, stamp and stare (see STAMP v. 2 c), swear and stare, denoting the indications of uncontrolled rage. Obs.

c. 1250.  Death, 234, in O. E. Misc. He [sc. the Devil] ȝeoneþ mid his muþe and stareþ mid his eȝe.

c. 1250.  Owl & Night., 77. Þu starest so þu wille abyten.

a. 1300.  Havelok, 508. Starinde als he were wod.

c. 1340.  Richard Rolle of Hampole, Prick of Conscience, 2225. Als wode lyons thai [the devils] sal than fare, And raumpe on hym, and skoul and stare.

c. 1360.  Song of Yesterday, 53, in E. E. P. (1862), 134. Nis … non so styf to stunt ne stare … Þat he naþ warnynges to be ware.

1390.  Gower, Conf., II. 63. He gan to fare Into the field and loke and stare, As he which feigneth to be wod.

1399.  Langl., Rich. Redeles, III. 189. This makyth men … to stroute and to stare and stryue aȝeyn vertu.

a. 1400.  Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS., xxix. ii. 75. Þe Ieuh bi-gon to stare and swere And seide þer com non such child þere.

1530.  Palsgr., 733/2. I stare, as a mans eyes stare for anger.

a. 1548.  Hall, Chron., Hen. VI., 131 b. Lorde how the Flemines bragged … that Calice should be wonne … swearyng and staryng, that thei would haue it, within thre daies at the moste.

1579.  Northbrooke, Dicing (1843), 8. If he can sweare and stare they say hee hath a stout courage.

1590.  Spenser, F. Q., I. iv. 33. His eies … stared sterne on all that him beheld. Ibid., III. vii. 39. Her firie eyes with furious sparkes did stare.

1615.  J. Taylor (Water P.), Taylor’s Rev., Wks. (1630), II. 145/2. Some laught, some swore, some star’d and stamp’d and curst.

1667.  Sturmy, Mariner’s Mag., Friendly Advt. (1669), c 3 b. They … will swear and stare, crack and boast, That they have done all things according to Art.

1837.  A. Tennent, Force of Imag., 64.

  b.  To open the eyes wide in astonishment; hence, to be amazed.

1399.  Langl., Rich. Redeles, II. 8. Some stode astonyed and stared for drede.

c. 1400.  Rowland & O., 551. Drondale felle so sadde and sare Þat þe Saraȝene bi-gane to stare.

a. 1400.  Pistill of Susan, 285 (MS. Phillipps). Tho criede þat ferly [read frely] fode: ‘Why spillist þou innocent blode?’ And all þei starid [v.rr. stoteyd, stynted, were a-stonyed] and stode.

1716.  Lady M. W. Montagu, Lett., I. iii. 12. I was yesterday at the French Church, and stared very much at their manner of service.

1782.  Cowper, Gilpin, 194. Said John, It is my wedding day And all the world would stare if wife should dine at Edmonton And I should dine at Ware!

1789.  Pitt, in G. Rose’s Diaries (1860), I. 98. You will stare a good deal at the circumstance which makes me write this letter.

1815.  Scott, Guy M., lviii. Mac-Morlan will stare when he sees the bill.

1820.  Byron, Juan, I. lxxxi. Even good men like to make the public stare.

1849.  Macaulay, Hist. Eng., vii. II. 194. Mordaunt wanted merely to enjoy the excitement of conflict, and to make men stare.

1850.  Mrs. Jameson, Leg. Monast. Ord. (1863), 429. To produce such illusions as make the vulgar stare.

1855.  Macaulay, Hist. Eng., xv. III. 605. The other councillors stared, but remained silent.

1902.  Violet Jacob, Sheep-Stealers, viii. Bumpett stared blankly. For once in his life he was quite taken aback.

  † 4.  To shine. Obs.

13[?].  E. E. Allit. P., A. 116. As stremande sternez … Staren in welkyn in wynter nyȝt.

c. 1394.  P. Pl. Crede, 553. Þei ben y-sewed wiþ whiȝt silk … Y-stongen wiþ stitches þat stareþ as siluer.

a. 1400–50.  Wars Alex., 3796. As ai stremand sternes stared all þaire wedis.

c. 1400.  Destr. Troy, 7349. The sternes full stithly starond o lofte.

c. 1440.  Promp. Parv., 472/2. Staryn, or schynyn, and glyderyn, niteo, rutilo.

  5.  Of hair, a horse’s coat, feathers, fibers of any kind: To stand on end. [So mod.G. starren.] Now chiefly technical. Also, † to spread out.

1523–34.  Fitzherb., Husb., § 56. Loke well, that the heare stare not.

1560.  Phaër, Æneid, IX. (1562), Dd iij. Thou sawest … how his helmet crest did streaming stare?

1565.  Cooper, Thesaurus, s.v. Coma, Horror comas erexit, feare made his heare to stare.

1590.  Cockaine, Treat. Hunting, D j. His coate also will stare and frise so vppon him, as you may easely knowe him thereby.

1603.  Owen, Pembrokeshire (1892), 127. The here of the seale stareth at the South windes.

1614.  Life & Death Geninges, 55. His face glowed, and as he thought his hayre stared.

1621.  Burton, Anat. Mel., I. ii. IV. iii. 195. There was such an hideous noyse … that their haire stared for feare.

1676.  D’Urfey, Madam Fickle, III. iii. See how his Perriwig stares with his wild passion.

a. 1722.  Lisle, Husb. (1757), 319. Their skins would turn scurfy and starky, and their wool stare and grow thin.

1748.  Richardson, Clarissa, VI. 157. Four old turkey-worked chairs, bursten-bottomed, the stuffing staring out.

1753.  Bartlet, Gentl. Farriery, xxxvi. 278. So that the hair stares up, and is what some term pen-feathered.

1788.  New Lond. Mag., 624. When the whole is dry, dress the feathers round the outline that may chance to stare a little.

1806–7.  J. Beresford, Miseries Hum. Life (1826), x. § 69. Its few remaining hairs [said of an old toothbrush] staring off horizontally on all sides.

1808.  Scott, Marmion, II. xxxii. The locks that wont her brow to shade, Star’d up erectly from her head.

1860.  All Year Round, No. 49. 531. One drink of hard water would put the favourite horse out of condition, make his coat ‘stare.’

1888.  Lancet, 14 Jan., 96/1. The affected cows were restless and irritable; their coats ‘stared.’

1891.  Labour Commission Gloss., s.v. Nap, [Filaments of cotton yarn] are very sensitive to electrical conditions, hence the importance of means to make them lie as smooth as possible, otherwise they polarise in all directions, that is ‘stare.’

  6.  Comb. † stare-about, one who stares about; stare-cat U.S. (see quot.).

1614.  B. Jonson, Barth. Fair, III. v. They stick not the Stare-abouts purses to take.

1859.  Bartlett, Dict. Amer. (ed. 2), 448. Stare-cat, a woman or girl who amuses herself with gazing at her neighbors.

1877.  St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 27 Aug., 2/1. The ‘stare-cat squads’ is what they call the old women who sit together on the piazza at some of the Saratoga hotels for the sole purpose of staring at and criticising all new people who arrive.