hemeralopia
/ˌhɛm.əɹ.əˈloʊ.pi.ə/
hemeralopia means the inability to see clearly in bright light; day blindness.
hemeralopia is pronounced /ˌhɛm.əɹ.əˈloʊ.pi.ə/.
Why “hemeralopia” is a great word
Hemeralopia is a condition of the eyes characterized by abnormally poor vision in bright light, or day blindness. From New Latin hēmeralōpia, from Ancient Greek ἡμεραλωπία (hēmeralōpía), from ἡμέρα (hēmérā, "day") + ἀλαός (alaos, "blind") + ὄψ (ops, "eye"). Unlike nyctalopia, which plunges the world into obscurity after sunset, or photophobia, which torments with pain from illumination, hemeralopia is a paradoxical failure in the glare of clarity. It is the high sun bleaching the world into a featureless wash, the glare off a windshield reducing the road to a white smear, the details of a loved one’s face dissolving into a painful halo of light—the cruel irony of a body built for daylight that cannot bear its full weight, leaving one to seek the dimness that others dread.
Etymology
Borrowed from New Latin hēmeralōpia, from Ancient Greek ἡμεραλωπία (hēmeralōpía). From ἡμέρα (hēmérā, “day”), ἀλαός (alaos, “blind”), and ὄψ (ops, “eye”).
noun
- The inability to see clearly in bright light; day blindness.
- Night blindness.
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