Meaning & use
blind spots
Last updated
“blind spots” is a form of “blind spot”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounusually plural
Areas around a vehicle that the driver cannot see in the mirrors or through the windows.
Grammar: Often plural for a vehicle: trucks have large blind spots.
Patterns
- check your blind spots
- a blind spot on the left
Large trucks have big blind spots on both sides.
Always glance over your shoulder to check your blind spots.
Wide mirrors help reduce the blind spots on the car.
nouncountablefigurative
Subjects or weaknesses that a person fails to notice or understand, usually without realizing it.
Grammar: Used figuratively: he has blind spots about his own habits.
Patterns
- have a blind spot about something
- blind spots in something
Every manager has blind spots, so good teams ask for feedback.
The report revealed blind spots in the company's safety checks.
She has a blind spot about her brother's mistakes.
nouncountablebiology
The small area of the eye's retina where the optic nerve leaves, which has no light-sensitive cells.
Grammar: Usually singular in this sense, plural when speaking of both eyes.
Every human eye has a blind spot where the optic nerve connects.
A simple test with two dots can show you your blind spots.
The brain fills in the gap, so we rarely notice our blind spots.
Word forms
| singular | blind spot |
|---|
Common combinations
- check your blind spots
- Check your blind spots before changing lanes.
- have blind spots
- We all have blind spots about our own behavior.
- expose blind spots
- The audit exposed blind spots in the budget.
- cover blind spots
- A second camera covers the blind spots.
- blind spots in knowledge
- The quiz revealed blind spots in my knowledge of history.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gaps
- It is general and neutral and does not suggest that the person fails to notice the problem.
- oversights
- It points to specific things missed on one occasion rather than a lasting tendency not to see.
- weaknesses
- It names a flaw but does not suggest that the person is unaware of it.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: blind spots or blind side?
blind spots vs blind side
To blindside someone is to surprise them with something unwelcome, while a blind spot is an area or topic that goes unnoticed.
Practice
Which sentence uses blind spots in its figurative sense?
Choose one answer.
Only the first sentence is about things a person fails to notice about themselves. The others refer to driving or the eye, which are literal senses.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “blind spots”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.