moon-blindness

A horse with moon-blindness stands in a stable at dusk.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A condition in horses: "moon-blindness" refers to a recurrent inflammatory eye disease in horses, also known as equine recurrent uveitis, which can cause vision impairment or blindness.
   • A colloquial term for night blindness: In older or informal usage, "moon-blindness" may also refer to nyctalopia, or the inability to see clearly in dim light or at night, though this is less common in modern veterinary or medical contexts.

Usage Examples

• (The horse has equine recurrent uveitis.)
• (A common but less accurate usage.)

Advanced Usage

• "to suffer from moon-blindness": to be affected by this eye condition in horses.
  • The mare has suffered from moon-blindness for years, leading to partial vision loss. (The horse has had recurrent eye inflammation.)
• "a case of moon-blindness": an instance or diagnosis of the disease.
  • The stable reported a new case of moon-blindness in one of its older geldings. (A new diagnosis of equine recurrent uveitis.)

Variants and Related Words

• Moon-blind (adj): affected by moon-blindness.
  • The moon-blind pony required special care to avoid further eye damage. (The pony had the eye condition.)
• Blindness (n): the state of being unable to see.
  • Moon-blindness is a specific cause of blindness in horses. (A general term for vision loss.)

Synonyms

• Equine recurrent uveitis: the formal medical term for moon-blindness in horses.
  • Equine recurrent uveitis is a painful condition that can lead to blindness if untreated. (A synonym used by veterinarians.)
• Night blindness: a term sometimes confused with moon-blindness, but referring to a different condition in humans.
  • Night blindness is caused by a deficiency in vitamin A, not the same as moon-blindness. (A related but distinct condition.)

Related Idioms

• "Blind as a bat": a common idiom meaning unable to see well, not directly related to moon-blindness.
  • Without his glasses, he is blind as a bat, but his horse does not have moon-blindness. (A figurative expression.)

Phrasal Verbs

• None directly applicable: "moon-blindness" is a noun and does not form phrasal verbs. Use "suffer from" or "diagnose with" as verb phrases.
  • The horse was diagnosed with moon-blindness. (Verb phrase using "diagnose with.")