outstare en · VERB
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *úd Proto-Germanic *ūt Proto-Germanic *ūt- Old English ūt- Middle English ut- English out- English stare English outstare From out- + stare.
Meanings
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(transitive) To stare at (someone) so hard or long that they look away.
He held a tray but did not move from where he stood and managed, without any trace of emotion, to outstare Henry, who was standing in a group, half-listening to an anecdote.
2004, Colm Toibin, The Master, paperback edition, Picador, page 44:[…]I would outstare the sternest eyes that look, Outbrave the heart most daring on earth, Pluck the young sucking cubs from the she-bear, Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey, To win thee, lady.[…]
c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| outstares | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| outstared | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| outstared | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| outstaring | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic |