Disease or Syndrome
myopia Audio
my·o·pi·a [ mahy-oh-pee-uh ]
Subclass of:
Refractive Errors
Etymology:
Greek myopia = near-sightedness
Ancient Greek word, formed from myein = to shut or wink, and opsis = vision (or ops = eye). Descriptive of the muscular efforts of a near-sighted person to focus on a distant object.
Definitions related to myopia:
  • A refractive error in which rays of light entering the eye parallel to the optic axis are brought to a focus in front of the retina, as a result of the eyeball being too long from front to back; also called nearsightedness because the near point is less distant than it is in emmetropia with an equal amplitude of accommodation.
    CRISP Thesaurus
    National Institutes of Health, 2006
  • An abnormality of refraction characterized by the ability to see objects nearby clearly, while objects in the distance appear blurry.
    Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO)
    The Human Phenotype Ontology Project, 2025
  • Nearsightedness. An optical error in which light rays meet and focus before reaching the retina, making objects that are far away appear blurry.
    Harvard Dictionary of Health Terms
    Harvard Medical Publishing, 2011
  • The condition in which the individual does not see far distances clearly.
    NCI
    U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
  • Nearsightedness (myopia) is a common vision condition in which you can see objects near to you clearly, but objects farther away are blurry. It occurs when the shape of your eye causes light rays to bend (refract) incorrectly, focusing images in front of your retina instead of on your retina.
    Mayo Clinic
    Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 2025
  • Myopia, visual abnormality in which the resting eye focuses the image of a distant object at a point in front of the retina (the light-sensitive layer of tissue that lines the back and sides of the eye), resulting in a blurred image. Myopic eyes, which are usually longer than normal from front to...
    Encyclopedia Britannica
    Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2025
Try this search on: Farlex, Merriam-Webster, Oxford Dictionary, or Wordnik

This content should not be used in place of medically-reviewed decision support reference material or professional medical advice. Some terms may have alternate or updated definitions not reflected in this set. The definitions on this page should not be considered complete or up to date.