dim
adjective
not bright; obscure from lack of light or emitted light.
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dim
1 American
[dim]
/ dɪm /
adjective
-
dimmer,
comparative
-
dimmest
superlative
-
not bright; obscure from lack of light or emitted light.
a dim room; a dim flashlight.
-
not seen clearly or in detail; indistinct.
a dim object in the distance.
-
not clear to the mind; vague.
a dim idea.
- Synonyms:
- hazy, fuzzy, indistinct, indefinite, faint, unclear
-
not brilliant; dull in luster.
a dim color.
-
not clear or distinct to the senses; faint.
a dim sound.
-
not seeing clearly.
eyes dim with tears.
-
tending to be unfavorable; not likely to happen, succeed, be favorable, etc..
a dim chance of winning.
-
not understanding clearly.
-
rather stupid; dim-witted.
verb (used with object)
-
dims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dimmed,
past participle, past
-
dimming
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
dims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dimmed,
past participle, past
-
dimming
present participle
verb phrase
idioms
dim.
2
American
abbreviation
dim.
3
American
abbreviation
-
dimension.
-
diminish.
-
diminuendo.
-
diminutive.
dim
British
/ dɪm /
adjective
-
badly illuminated
a dim room
-
not clearly seen; indistinct; faint
a dim shape
-
having weak or indistinct vision
eyes dim with tears
-
lacking in understanding; mentally dull
-
not clear in the mind; obscure
a dim memory
-
lacking in brilliance, brightness, or lustre
a dim colour
-
tending to be unfavourable; gloomy or disapproving (esp in the phrase take a dim view )
verb
-
to become or cause to become dim
-
(tr) to cause to seem less bright, as by comparison
-
Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): dip. (tr) to switch (car headlights) from the main to the lower beam
dim
More Idioms
Usage
What does dim mean? Dim describes something as lacking light or having a weak brightness, as in a dim flashlight or a dim tunnel. Dim also describes things that are unclear, because of poor visibility, a weak understanding, or a more general lack of clarity, as in a dim shape in the distance, a dim noise, or a dim knowledge of math. Dim also describes having weak or poor vision, as in Jane’s eyes were dim with tears. Dim can be used to mean lacking mental ability or having low intelligence. However, this is almost always considered insulting. As a verb, dim means to make something dim or less bright, as in He dimmed the lights. It can also be used to mean to grow dim or dimmer, as in The noise of the engine dimmed as the car drove out of sight. Example: Although the tunnel was dim, the faint candlelight guided the miner back to the surface.
Synonym Usage
See dark.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dimsimple
-
dimssimple
-
have dimmedperfect
-
has dimmedperfect
-
am dimmingprogressive
-
are dimmingprogressive
-
is dimmingprogressive
-
have been dimmingperfect progressive
-
has been dimmingperfect progressive
Past
-
dimmedsimple
-
had dimmedperfect
-
was dimmingprogressive
-
were dimmingprogressive
-
had been dimmingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dim1
before 1000; Middle English, Old English dim ( me ), cognate with Old Frisian dim, Old Norse dimmr
Origin of dim.2
From the Latin word dīmidius
Explanation
Dim has several meanings related to a lack of light, hope, or knowledge. A room that is not well lit is dim, a slow thinker is dim, and when life looks hopeless, your prospects are dim. To dim a light is to dull it, like by putting a shade over it. A vague idea without a lot of specifics is also dim, since it's hard to see or understand the idea. Someone who's not very bright is dim or a dimwit. When things are hopeless, they're dim too. For example, if a football team is losing by fifty points, their chances of winning are dim.
Vocabulary lists containing dim
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 5
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The New SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words
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The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“May his struggles never dim the memories of a sweet man, a dear friend, and a master musician.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026
Wu worked with biologists and used dim red light and a customised fisheye lens to minimise disturbance.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
That means we can judge the distance to them from how dim they appear to us.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 4, 2026
And, with the museum’s dim lighting, dated technology and underutilized areas, it can feel at times as if one is wandering in a past-its-prime shopping mall or in the forgotten corner of an airport terminal.
From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026
She raced past gigantic windows, dim star-lanterns, and silent automats.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
“It was looking pretty dim. Fifty-two, and you die right there, on your own property? That’s pretty sad. This gives a whole new meaning to life right now.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2023
"The establishment is saying if you don't go to college, your soul is lost and your future is quite dim. We are saying you can have perfectly fulfilling careers outside that path."
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2015
To outsiders he might seem a dim. ineffectual visionary, but to them he was a genuine Messiah.
From Time Magazine Archive
Parry spent many of his nights alone in his ascetic bedroom, the lights dim. his weighty frame slack on the bed.
From Time Magazine Archive
“Really, Miss Mortimer . . . I hardly think so . . . the light here among the ferns must be rather dim. . . .”
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
The contradiction between a relatively warm early Earth and a cooler, dimmer Sun is known as the Faint Young Sun paradox.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 2, 2026
Those observations will inform an aspirational future mission — the Habitable Worlds Observatory, which aims to view Earth-like planets more than 1 billion times dimmer than their host stars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
Actor, singer and "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane wrote on X that "the world is a dimmer place without her."
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
The UK Health Security Agency says the event can make the Sun appear dimmer than usual, making it easier to look at directly.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
I would’ve expected his bright eyes to look dimmer in the night, but instead they seem to reflect the light coming from the windows above us.
From "Legend" by Marie Lu
Hegseth, on the other hand, is among the dimmest.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
A 6.5 magnitude is generally the dimmest object the human eye can see.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2024
Such demolitions typically cause a much brighter display and rarely last longer than a year, so it would have to be the longest and dimmest so far.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 17, 2024
"The fantasy of two-all going to The Oval had been enchanting to both sets of fans; only the dimmest partisans so crave trophies as to be gratified by non-results," he wrote.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2023
In a sense, they took considerable pride in not having the dimmest understanding of what Hamilton was talking about.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
But that tariff relief will fade as energy stress dims outlook, the S&P economists said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 25, 2026
Younger people have a generally sunnier starting point but that dims as they age - not a great surprise - and all age groups react to events similarly.
From BBC ● Jan. 17, 2026
But his style of running the Pentagon—including the way he’s put forth his new policy—gravely dims his chances for success.
From Slate ● Nov. 8, 2025
But the Big Ten move plus playing nonconference games against LSU and Notre Dame in the same season dims championship hopes precipitously.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2024
Alice dims the lights, and my mom puts out cloth napkins, and everything feels really fancy.
From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli
New State Capital has lost employees in the past year as prospects for big payouts for some dimmed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
The April ceasefire put an end to the most intense fighting, but sporadic attacks, mainly around the Strait of Hormuz, have dimmed the prospects of a final peace agreement.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
With the overhead lights dimmed and soft light spilling from the dioramas, the displays looked like windows to other worlds.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
A vital warning from experts is to avoid looking at the sun even when it appears to have dimmed during the eclipse.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Her heartbeat only settled after the hasira leaf’s power took effect and the lurid yellow glow in his eyes slightly dimmed.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
Those changes in visibility produce the distinctive pattern of brightening and dimming that the astronomers had struggled to understand.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 10, 2026
Market uptake for newly launched biosimilars—lower-cost copycat versions—has suffered a steep decline in recent years, dimming companies’ excitement about developing them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Some Nepali families who were searching for their missing loved ones had begun holding symbolic funerals in the last few days, in a sign of dimming hope for survivors.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
This will result in a slight dimming of the Sun's light and a drop in temperature.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
They dashed up the cement stairs and out into the dimming afternoon light, then bolted across the street.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
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