Meaning & use
lens
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Meanings
nouncountable
A curved piece of glass or plastic that bends light, used in cameras, glasses, and microscopes.
Grammar: Plural lenses; a camera may have several.
Patterns
- a lens for something
She changed the lens on her camera to take a wide photo.
The microscope has three lenses of different strengths.
His glasses have thick lenses.
nouncountablefigurative
A particular way of understanding or judging something, as if looking through a lens.
Grammar: Often followed by of or used with through: through a lens.
Patterns
- through the lens of something
- a lens on something
The book looks at history through a new lens.
She views the issue through the lens of her own childhood.
The documentary offers a lens on city life.
nouncountablebiology
The clear part of the eye behind the pupil that focuses light onto the retina.
Grammar: A body part term; the lens of the eye.
Patterns
- the lens of the eye
The lens of the eye changes shape to focus.
A cloudy lens is called a cataract.
Surgeons replaced the damaged lens with an artificial one.
Word forms
| plural | lenses |
|---|
Common combinations
- camera lens
- A scratch on the camera lens blurred the photo.
- contact lens
- She takes out her contact lenses at night.
- through a lens
- We see the past through the lens of today.
- zoom lens
- A zoom lens lets you photograph distant birds.
- cultural lens
- He analyzed the story through a cultural lens.
- wide-angle lens
- A wide-angle lens captures more of the scene.
Synonyms and how they differ
- perspective
- Perspective is the general word for a viewpoint, while lens specifically suggests a framework that colors what you see.
- viewpoint
- Viewpoint is a plain word for a position from which one judges, while lens implies a method or theory.
- magnifier
- A magnifier is a tool for enlarging, narrower than lens, which can also correct or focus.
- outlook
- Outlook usually describes general attitude about the future, not an analytic angle.
Word family
Commonly confused: lens or lends?
lens vs lends
Lends is the verb lend with a s ending and means gives temporarily; it sounds like lens but has nothing to do with glass or sight.
Practice
Which sentence uses lens in its figurative sense?
Choose one answer.
Through a feminist lens means from a particular viewpoint. The other sentences refer to physical lenses.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “lens”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.