dull

Formsduller, dullest

Formsdulls, dulling, dulled

1. 1
   adjective

   Lacking excitement or interest; tedious enough to make time seem to drag.

   The lecture was dull and dragged on for nearly two hours.

   Critics dismissed the novel as dull despite its promising premise.

   Similarboring, bland, flat, monotonous, humdrum

   Oppositeinteresting, exciting, lively, engaging

2. 2
   adjective

   Lacking a keen cutting edge; not sharp, so it cuts only with difficulty.

   A dull blade requires far more force to cut through meat.

   He sharpened the dull axe before splitting the firewood.

   Similarblunt

   Oppositesharp

3. 3
   adjective

   Not shiny; having a matte surface with no particular luster or brightness.

   The paint dried to a dull finish rather than a glossy sheen.

   Tarnish left the antique silver looking dull and grayish.

   Similarmatte, dim, faint, dingy, wan

   Oppositebright

   Note

   With colors, dull means muted rather than dark: a dull red or yellow has lost its glow, not its hue. It also fits light sources that burn weakly, such as a dull fire or a dull lamp. Bunting stares into 'the dull, small fire' in Marie Belloc Lowndes's The Lodger (1913). Naturalists use the comparative freely, so a young bird's plumage can be 'rather duller' than an adult's.

4. 4
   adjective

   Not bright or quick-witted; slow to grasp ideas and understand things.

   Critics unfairly judged the boy as dull when he was merely shy.

   A dull student often just needs more time and patience.

   Similarstupid, dense, brainless, mindless, childish

   Oppositebright, clever, intelligent, sharp

   Note

   The meaning closest to the word's roots: Old English dol meant 'foolish, silly, erring', and behind it lies a Germanic word for 'stunned, mad, misled'. It takes at for the field where the slowness shows, as in Thackeray's 'dull at classical learning'. Shakespeare's 'not bred so dull but she can learn' shows the older pattern so dull but, which sets a limit on the slowness.

5. 5
   adjective

   Not intense; felt faintly or only slightly, as a sensation or pain.

   A dull throb settled behind her eyes as the day wore on.

   He ignored the dull discomfort in his shoulder and kept working.

   Similarmild, faint, slight, low-grade

   Oppositesharp, acute, intense

6. 6
   adjective

   Of a sound, muffled and lacking clarity or resonance, as if heard through a barrier.

   A dull thump echoed as the heavy box hit the floor.

   The cracked bell gave only a dull clang.

   Similarmuffled, muted, flat

   Oppositeclear, resonant, ringing, sharp

7. 7
   adjective

   Sluggish and listless; moving or proceeding slowly, with little energy or liveliness.

   Trade was dull through the long summer months.

   She woke feeling dull and heavy-limbed after a restless night.

   Similarsluggish, lazy, idle, listless, inert

   Oppositebrisk, lively, energetic

   Note

   Here the slowness sits in the faculties themselves. The King James Bible of 1611 gives the sense its lasting construction, ears 'dull of hearing', where dull of names the faculty that has gone sluggish. Spenser's 'dull tongue' puts the adjective before the organ instead. Ponderous and slothful are its near neighbors, and both stress weight and reluctance more than weariness.

8. 8
   adjective

   Overcast and cloudy; gray throughout, with little or no sunshine breaking through.

   A dull November sky hung low over the city.

   The day turned dull as thick clouds rolled in.

   Similarovercast, cloudy, gray, gloomy, leaden

   Oppositebright, sunny, clear

9. 9
   verbtransitive

   To take the sharpness off a blade or edge; to blunt something that was sharp.

   Cutting through bone can dull even a high-quality blade.

   He dulled the chisel by striking a hidden nail.

   Similarblunt

   Oppositesharpen, hone, whet

10. 10
    verbintransitive

    To lose a sharp edge; to become blunt through use or wear.

    Even good blades dull after months of daily use.

    The axe dulled noticeably after a long day of chopping.

    Similarblunt

    Note

    The intransitive twin of the blunting verb: a razor will dull with use, while years of misuse dull the tools. The same form serves both, so the edge can be the subject of the change or its object. With use and over time are its natural companions, because the change it names is gradual wear rather than a single blow.

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