blinker

plural blinkers

1. Anything that blinks.

   She was a frequent blinker, always on the verge of tears.

2. AustraliaNorthern USinformalThe turn signal of an automobile.

   Synonyms: directional, directional signal, direction indicator, indicator, trafficator, turn indicator, turn signal, winker

3. in pluralA shield attached to the bridle of a horse or other domesticated animal to prevent it from seeing things behind it and to its side.

   Synonyms: blinder, winker

4. Whatever obstructs sight or discernment.

   This floor let not the vulgar tread, / Who worship only what they dread: / Nor bigots who but one way see, / Through blinkers of authority

   1732, Matthew Green, Grotto

5. rareThe eyelid.
6. slangA black eye.

   The next morning, Jimmy came home with a fat lip and a black eye. Flory rushed over to tend to him. “Ain't nothin'. Just a blinker... had a fight with a guy. […]

   2011, Mari Christie, Concrete Loyalties, page 419

7. cellular automataIn Conway's Game of Life, an arrangement of three cells in a row that switches between horizontal and vertical orientations in each generation.

   3 live cells together can yield either a blinker or a block, so these will be the most common objects formed "out of the void".

   1994 May 13, Louis Howell, “Louis Howell's question of block clearing in life (simple solution)”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet)

   2 more examples

   The following for example, doesn't work because the spark at the top is actually a blinker, and doesn't die. Without the blinker, this object is known as an OWSS (overweight spaceship).

   1992 August 13, David Bell, “Spaceships in Conway's Life (Part 1)”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet)

   As Hickerson points out, a glider aimed at a faraway blinker or preblock has only 8 cells, but can be arranged to run as long as you want.

   2008 January 8, Dave Greene, “Evolutionary factor in Conway's life”, in comp.theory.cell-automata (Usenet)

8. slangA situation where the light of a dab pen or vape starts blinking, which happens when the user takes an extremely long hit.

   I just hit a blinker.

   2 more examples

   a double blinker (hitting blinkers on two pens simultaneously)

   When you just hit 2 back to back blinkers off the dab pen and you trying to hold your cough around people

   2023 January 31, @GreedyAlmighty, Twitter, archived from the original on 09 Dec 2023

present singular third person blinkers · participle present blinkering · participle past blinkered · past blinkered

1. transitiveTo put blinkers on.

   The farmer stopped to blinker his horse before riding into an area of heavy traffic.