Myopia
/maɪˈoʊ.pi.ə/noun
A condition in which nearby objects are seen clearly but distant objects appear blurred.
Did you know?Myopia comes from Greek words for “to blink/squint” and “eye,” so the diagnosis began as a description of a narrowed, half-shut gaze rather than a medical theory.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
μυωπία (mūōpía)
“Nearsightedness; the condition of squinting or having a narrowed gaze”
Late Greek
Greek
μύωψ (mýōps)
“A person with a squinting or blinked eye; nearsighted”
Classical Greek
Greek
μύειν (mýein) + ὤψ (ṓps)
“To shut or blink + eye, face, sight”
Late Latin
Latin
myopia
“Nearsightedness”
17th Century
English
myopie / myopia
“Nearsightedness”
Modern English
English
myopia
“Nearsightedness; also figuratively, narrow-mindedness”