different between curb vs dull
curb
English
Alternative forms
- kerb (British) (noun, and verb senses 3, 4 and 5 only)
Etymology
From Middle French courbe (“curve, curved object”), from Latin curvus (“bent, crooked, curved”). Doublet of curve.
Pronunciation
- (General American) IPA(key): /k?b/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /k??b/
- Rhymes: -??(?)b
- Homophone: kerb
Noun
curb (plural curbs)
- (American spelling, Canadian spelling) A concrete margin along the edge of a road; a kerb (UK, Australia, New Zealand)
- A raised margin along the edge of something, such as a well or the eye of a dome, as a strengthening.
- Something that checks or restrains; a restraint.
- 1641, John Denham, The Sophy
- Even by these Men, Religion, that should be / The Curb, is made the Spur to Tyranny.
- 1641, John Denham, The Sophy
- A riding or driving bit for a horse that has rein action which amplifies the pressure in the mouth by leverage advantage placing pressure on the poll via the crown piece of the bridle and chin groove via a curb chain.
- 1605, Michael Drayton, The Fourth Eclogue
- He that before ran in the pastures wild / Felt the stiff curb controul his angry jaws.
- 1605, Michael Drayton, The Fourth Eclogue
- (Canada, US) A sidewalk, covered or partially enclosed, bordering the airport terminal road system with adjacent paved areas to permit vehicles to off-load or load passengers.
- A swelling on the back part of the hind leg of a horse, just behind the lowest part of the hock joint, generally causing lameness.
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
curb (third-person singular simple present curbs, present participle curbing, simple past and past participle curbed)
- (transitive) To check, restrain or control.
- 1718, Matthew Prior, Solomon on the Vanity of the World
- Where pinching want must curb her warm desires.
- 1718, Matthew Prior, Solomon on the Vanity of the World
- (transitive) To rein in.
- (transitive) To furnish with a curb, as a well; to restrain by a curb, as a bank of earth.
- (transitive, slang) Ellipsis of curb stomp.
- (transitive) To bring to a stop beside a curb.
- (transitive) To damage vehicle wheels or tires by running into or over a pavement curb.
- (transitive) To bend or curve.
- 1603, Philemon Holland (translator), The Philosophie, commonly called, the Morals (originally by Plutarch)
- crooked and curbed lines
- 1603, Philemon Holland (translator), The Philosophie, commonly called, the Morals (originally by Plutarch)
- (intransitive) To crouch; to cringe.
Synonyms
- (check, restrain, control): behedge, curtail, limit; See also Thesaurus:curb
- (rein in):
- (furnish with a curb):
- (force to hit the curb): curb stomp
- (damage wheels on a curb):
- (bend or curve): bow, flex, incurvate; See also Thesaurus:bend
- (crouch or cringe): bend, fawn, stoop
Translations
Related terms
- curvaceous
- curvature
- curve
- curvy
Further reading
- curb in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- curb in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
- curb at OneLook Dictionary Search
Romanian
Etymology
From French courbe.
Adjective
curb m or n (feminine singular curb?, masculine plural curbi, feminine and neuter plural curbe)
- curve
Declension
curb From the web:
- what curbs appetite
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- what curbside pickup
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- what curb means
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dull
English
Alternative forms
- dul, dulle (all obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle English dull, dul (also dyll, dill, dwal), from Old English dol (“dull, foolish, erring, heretical; foolish, silly; presumptuous”), from Proto-Germanic *dulaz, a variant of *dwalaz (“stunned, mad, foolish, misled”), from Proto-Indo-European *d?wel-, *d?ewel- (“to dim, dull, cloud, make obscure, swirl, whirl”). Cognate with Scots dull, doll (“slow to understand or hear, deaf, dull”), North Frisian dol (“rash, unthinking, giddy, flippant”), Dutch dol (“crazy, mad, insane”), Low German dul, dol (“mad, silly, stupid, fatuous”), German toll (“crazy, mad, wild, fantastic”), Danish dval (“foolish, absurd”), Icelandic dulur (“secretive, silent”), West-Flemish dul (angry, furious).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /d?l/
- (Canada) IPA(key): /d?l/, /d?l/, /d??/
- (US)
- Rhymes: -?l
Adjective
dull (comparative duller, superlative dullest)
- Lacking the ability to cut easily; not sharp.
- Boring; not exciting or interesting.
- Not shiny; having a matte finish or no particular luster or brightness.
- a dull fire or lamp;? a dull red or yellow;? a dull mirror
- A great bargain also had been the excellent Axminster carpet which covered the floor; as, again, the arm-chair in which Bunting now sat forward, staring into the dull, small fire.
- Not bright or intelligent; stupid; having slow understanding.
- Sluggish, listless.
- This people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing.
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, Faerie Queene
- O, help my weak wit and sharpen my dull tongue.
- Cloudy, overcast.
- Insensible; unfeeling.
- Think me not / So dull a devil to forget the loss / Of such a matchless wife.
- Heavy; lifeless; inert.
- c. 1857', Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Table-Talk
- As turning the logs will make a dull fire burn, so changes of study a dull brain.
- c. 1857', Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Table-Talk
- (of pain etc) Not intense; felt indistinctly or only slightly.
- Pressing on the bruise produces a dull pain.
- (of a noise or sound) Not clear, muffled.
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:boring
- See also Thesaurus:stupid
- (not shiny): lackluster, matte
Antonyms
- bright
- intelligent
- sharp
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
dull (third-person singular simple present dulls, present participle dulling, simple past and past participle dulled)
- (transitive) To render dull; to remove or blunt an edge or something that was sharp.
- Years of misuse have dulled the tools.
- 1623, Francis Bacon, A Discourse of a War with Spain
- This […] dulled their swords.
- (transitive) To soften, moderate or blunt; to make dull, stupid, or sluggish; to stupefy.
- He drinks to dull the pain.
- 1850, Richard Chenevix Trench, Notes on the Miracles of Our Lord
- Use and custom have so dulled our eyes.
- (intransitive) To lose a sharp edge; to become dull.
- A razor will dull with use.
- To render dim or obscure; to sully; to tarnish.
Synonyms
- dullen
Translations
References
- dull in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- dull in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
Anagrams
- ULDL
Welsh
Etymology
Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dey?- (“to show, point out”).
Pronunciation
- (North Wales) IPA(key): /d???/
- (South Wales) IPA(key): /d??/
Noun
dull m (plural dulliau)
- method
Mutation
Further reading
- R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present) , “dull”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
References
dull From the web:
- what dull means
- what dulls a knife the fastest
- what dull pain means
- what dulls a chainsaw chain
- what dulls scissors
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- what dulls your taste buds
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