different between lessen vs dull
lessen
English
Etymology
From Middle English lessenen, lasnen, equivalent to less +? -en (verbal suffix).
Pronunciation
- enPR: l??s?n, IPA(key): /?l?s?n/
- Rhymes: -?s?n
- Homophone: lesson
Verb
lessen (third-person singular simple present lessens, present participle lessening, simple past and past participle lessened)
- (transitive) To make less; to diminish; to reduce.
- a. 1686, Benjamin Calamy, a sermon
- Charity […] shall lessen his punishment.
- December 6, 1709, Francis Atterbury, a sermon preach'd before the sons of the clergy at their anniversary-meeting in the Church of St. Paul
- St. Paul chose to magnify his office when ill men conspired to lessen it.
- a. 1686, Benjamin Calamy, a sermon
- (intransitive) To become less.
Translations
Conjunction
lessen
- (nonstandard, dialect) unless.
Anagrams
- Elsens, elsens, lenses, sensel
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?l?s?(n)/
- Rhymes: -?s?n
Etymology 1
From Middle Dutch lesschen, from a merger of two Old Dutch [Term?] verbs:
- *leskan, from Proto-Germanic *leskan?; class 5 strong, intransitive.
- lesken, from Proto-Germanic *laskijan?; class 1 weak, causative of the first verb.
Verb
lessen
- (transitive) to quench (thirst)
Inflection
Derived terms
- blussen
Etymology 2
From les +? -en.
Verb
lessen
- (intransitive) to take a lesson (usually a driving lesson)
Inflection
Etymology 3
See the etymology of the main entry.
Noun
lessen
- Plural form of les
Hungarian
Etymology
les +? -jen
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [?l????n]
- Hyphenation: les?sen
Verb
lessen
- third-person singular subjunctive present indefinite of les
Swedish
Adjective
lessen
- Alternative spelling of ledsen
Anagrams
- selens
lessen From the web:
- what lessens the effect of alcohol
- what lessen means
- what lessens the effects of covid
- what lessens the effects of xanax
- what lessens human dignity
- what lessens swelling
- what lessens milk supply
- what lessens hot flashes
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
- what dulls iron
- what dull hair means
- what dulls your taste buds
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