"neared" is the past tense or past participle form of the verb "near".
No the word neared is not a noun. It is a past tense verb.
Depending on the use, the word near can serve as an adverb, adjective, preposition, or verb. Adverb: Come near. Adjective: in the near future Preposition: near the time Verb. The boat neared the docks.
As he neared the finish line, his heart was pounding like
The part of speech for this particular word is a noun.
part of speech
The part of speech for "answer" is a noun.
adverb
what part of speech is beneath
The part of speech for "unfamiliar" is an adjective.
The part of speech of "came" is a verb.
The part of speech for "twirl" is a verb.
The part of speech for "explicit" is an adjective.