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dull
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- pronunciation:
- duhl
- parts of speech:
- adjective, transitive verb, intransitive verb
- features:
- Word Combinations (adjective, verb), Word Explorer
part of speech: |
adjective |
inflections: |
duller, dullest |
definition 1: |
lacking in interest, originality, or liveliness; boring.
I found myself daydreaming during his dull speech.It was a dull party, so we went home early.- synonyms:
- boring, tedious, uninteresting
- antonyms:
- bubbly, charming, clever, exciting, fascinating, glamorous, interesting, juicy, lively, piquant, racy, scintillating, scintillating, sensational, thrilling, vibrant
- similar words:
- arid, barren, bland, blank, colorless, dead, dreary, dry, flat, humdrum, innocuous, insipid, lifeless, monotonous, neutral, pallid, ponderous, prosaic, slack, tame, tiresome, uneventful, unoriginal, vapid, wearisome
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definition 2: |
having a blunt cutting edge.
The dull sword needed sharpening.- synonyms:
- blunt
- antonyms:
- keen, sharp
- similar words:
- obtuse, pointless
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definition 3: |
deficient in mental ability; unintelligent.
These students are not dull; they simply need motivating.- synonyms:
- dense, dimwitted, slow, stupid, thick, unintelligent
- antonyms:
- bright, clever, keen, nimble, sharp, smart
- similar words:
- blunt, bovine, imbecile, simple, witless
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definition 4: |
persistent but not intense.
While the pain was still dull, I ignored it.- synonyms:
- nagging
- antonyms:
- intense, sharp
- similar words:
- chronic, persistent
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definition 5: |
lacking in receptiveness, appreciation, or alertness.
The performers were tired of playing to dull audiences.- synonyms:
- unappreciative, unreceptive
- antonyms:
- acute, appreciative, clever, lively
- similar words:
- apathetic, blank, indifferent, obtuse, phlegmatic, torpid, unresponsive
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definition 6: |
lacking in variety or intensity of color or brightness.
I feel lifeless on dull, rainy afternoons like this.The room was painted a dull gray.- synonyms:
- dim, drab
- antonyms:
- bright, colorful, gay, vivid
- similar words:
- colorless, dingy, dismal, dreary, flat, lackluster, lowering, lusterless, monotonous, pale, pallid
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definition 7: |
muffled, low, or indistinct in sound.
The villagers could hear the dull roar of distant cannon.- synonyms:
- low, muffled
- antonyms:
- distinct, resonant, sharp
- similar words:
- deadened, indistinct
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definition 8: |
not shiny or lustrous; matte.
Our hair tends to become dull as we age.- synonyms:
- matte
- antonyms:
- glossy, lustrous, polished, shiny
- similar words:
- lackluster, opaque
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related words: |
banal, deadly, dense, dim, dopey, drab, dumb, dusky, empty, faint, fishy, hollow, idiotic, inactive, literal, logy, neutral, nondescript, overcast, pale, passive, sleepy, somber, stale, stolid, threadbare, tired, trite, vacant, weak, weary |
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part of speech: |
transitive verb |
inflections: |
dulls, dulling, dulled |
definition: |
to cause to become dull.
Rust has dulled the knife.- synonyms:
- blunt, hebetate
- antonyms:
- brighten, enliven, hone, quicken, sharpen, whet
- similar words:
- blur, deaden, ease, palliate, stale
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related words: |
baffle, blanch, chill, dampen, mollify, mute, numb, opiate, pale, soothe, still, tarnish, tone down |
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part of speech: |
intransitive verb |
definition: |
to become dull.
My creativity seems to have dulled over the years.- synonyms:
- sharpen, stale
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derivations: |
dullish (adj.), dully (adv.), dullness (n.) |
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