boring

¹ American  

[bawr-ing] / ˈbɔr ɪŋ /

adjective

1. causing or marked by boredom; dull and uninteresting; tiresome: to have a boring time.

   a boring discussion;

   to have a boring time.

   Synonyms:

   tedious, tiresome, dull

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boring ² American  

[bawr-ing, bohr-] / ˈbɔr ɪŋ, ˈboʊr- /

noun

borings plural

1. Machinery.

   1. the act or process of making or enlarging a hole.

   2. the hole so made.

2. Geology. a cylindrical sample of earth strata obtained by boring a vertical hole.

3. borings, the chips, fragments, or dust produced in boring.

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boring ¹ British  

/ ˈbɔːrɪŋ /

noun

1. 1. the act or process of making or enlarging a hole

   2. the hole made in this way

2. (often plural) a fragment, particle, chip, etc, produced during boring

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boring ² British  

/ ˈbɔːrɪŋ /

adjective

1. dull; repetitious; uninteresting

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• boringness
  noun
• boringly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• borings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of boring¹

First recorded in 1835–45; bore ¹ + -ing ²

Origin of boring²

First recorded in 1400–50; bore ² + -ing ¹

Explanation

As an adjective boring describes something (or someone) that is tedious, dull, and lacking in interest. As a noun, boring refers to the act of drilling a hole, or the hole itself. When a geologist's powerful drill makes a boring into the earth, you can remove a sample and learn about the history of our planet just by seeing what's contained in the boring's layers. Of course, if you aren't interested in that kind of thing, you might find a two-hour lecture on the subject a bit boring.

Example Sentences

In the years after, Gracias or Valor invested in all of Musk’s projects, including Neuralink, the Boring Company, the Twitter acquisition and xAI.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026

Musk also champions digital currencies and has a hand in several other smaller companies, including tunnel-maker the Boring Company.

From BBC • Jun. 4, 2026

Boring as it may seem, most Californians want someone who’ll focus on their workaday concerns, not jollification.

From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2026

Estimates of Musk’s wealth vary, largely depending on how his private companies—which also include Neuralink and the Boring Co.—are valued.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

The ceiling of the Boring Room was lower than anywhere else in the house.

From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Related Words

• dull
• humdrum
• lifeless
• monotonous
• mundane
• stale
• stodgy
• stuffy
• stupid
• tame
• tedious
• tiresome
• tiring
• trite
• uninteresting