dull
Americanadjective
-
duller,
comparative
-
dullest
superlative
-
not sharp; blunt.
a dull knife.
-
causing boredom; tedious; uninteresting.
a dull sermon.
- Antonyms:
- interesting
-
not lively or spirited; listless.
-
not bright, intense, or clear; dim.
a dull day; a dull sound.
-
having very little depth of color; lacking in richness or intensity of color.
-
slow in motion or action; not brisk; sluggish.
a dull day in the stock market.
-
mentally slow; lacking brightness of mind; somewhat stupid; obtuse.
- Synonyms:
- stolid, unintelligent, unimaginative
- Antonyms:
- bright
-
lacking keenness of perception in the senses or feelings; insensible; unfeeling.
-
not intense or acute.
a dull pain.
verb (used with or without object)
-
dulls,
present (3rd person singular)
-
dulled,
past participle, past
-
dulling
present participle
adjective
-
slow to think or understand; stupid
-
lacking in interest
-
lacking in perception or the ability to respond; insensitive
-
lacking sharpness; blunt
-
not acute, intense, or piercing
-
(of weather) not bright or clear; cloudy
-
not active, busy, or brisk
-
lacking in spirit or animation; listless
-
(of colour) lacking brilliance or brightness; sombre
-
not loud or clear; muffled
-
med (of sound elicited by percussion, esp of the chest) not resonant
verb
Synonym Usage
Dull, blunt refer to the edge or point of an instrument, tool, or the like. Dull implies a lack or a loss of keenness or sharpness: a dull razor or saw. Blunt may mean the same or may refer to an edge or point not intended to be keen or sharp: a blunt or stub pen; a blunt foil. Dull, blunt, slow, stupid are applied to mental qualities. Dull implies obtuseness, lack of imagination: a dull child. Blunt implies loss of original keenness of intelligence through disease, sad experience, or the like: His critical faculties were blunt. Slow applies to a sluggish intellect: a slow mind. Stupid implies slowness of mental processes, but also lack of intelligence, wisdom, prudence, etc.: a stupid person.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
dullsimple
-
dullssimple
-
have dulledperfect
-
has dulledperfect
-
am dullingprogressive
-
are dullingprogressive
-
is dullingprogressive
-
have been dullingperfect progressive
-
has been dullingperfect progressive
Past
-
dulledsimple
-
had dulledperfect
-
was dullingprogressive
-
were dullingprogressive
-
had been dullingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dull
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English; akin to Old English dol “foolish, stupid”; cognate with German toll
Explanation
To dull something means to take away its edge, its energy, or its excitement. "Watching that movie will dull your senses, until you fall asleep." Let’s think of something interesting about dull. Hmm. It can be a verb or an adjective! So when you’re reading a dull or boring word description, for instance, it can dull or deaden your appetite for reading more word descriptions. That’s pretty fascinating, no? You can even use it for physical things, like a knife, which you can dull, that is, make it less sharp. You can even dull something visual, making it lacking in light, or use it describe pain — you know, the kind that is not sharp, just an ache. Exciting? No — dull.
Vocabulary lists containing dull
The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 1
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The New SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words
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The ACT Reading Test: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 4
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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:
And while Grande later insisted the break was pre-planned and not “reactive or impulsive,” there’s no doubt the announcement was timed to dull the cacophony of both the jeers and cheers.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
"My skin feels dull and textured and just looks more tired in general, and my chest feels heavier and sore."
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
July is the dull month; beginning in August, volatility increases and generally rises into October.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 23, 2026
She gives him lotus flowers to dull his pain, but as he keeps eating them, his memories and sense of identity begin to fade.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
They’re the noise-cancelling kind, which dull Dad’s stressed-out voice even when I’m not listening to music.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
European soccer has lived this reality, too, its most passionate supporters crowded out by duller, well-heeled buyers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
That show is growing duller, and more lethargic and repetitive, by the day, like watching reruns of a canceled sitcom.
From Salon ● Feb. 13, 2026
They don’t always mesh well, and the darker the series gets, the duller it becomes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2024
In general, cold water sounds brighter and splashier, while hot water sounds duller and frothier.
From New York Times ● May 9, 2024
The fourth hand was longer and more slender, and seemed to be made of a duller metal than the other three.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
To be clear, there is no guarantee of finding magic in your dullest job duties.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 8, 2026
“When you are a scientist, and you are trying to prove or disprove a notion, you work at the bench doing the dullest, most routine things over and over and over again,” Baltimore once explained.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2025
In parts of south-west England it was the dullest April since 1981.
From BBC ● May 1, 2024
Pandemic-era remote learning is well over, but for middle and high school students, school can still seem like an endless Zoom in the dullest sense of the word.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 13, 2023
History of Magic was the dullest subject on their schedule.
From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling
But the passage of time naturally dulls the horror for people farther away.
From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2026
But a place like the Grand dulls the bite of that persistent feeling.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
Over time it dulls the conscience to any moral hierarchy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2025
In theory, each ingredient plays a role: one dries secretions, another loosens phlegm, a third dulls the cough reflex.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2025
It burns intensely and then dulls to an aching throb.
From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh
Yet performance has not dulled the appetite for change.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
The law’s shield is shattered, and its sword is dulled.
From Slate ● May 1, 2026
But strategic-reserve releases, supplies already at sea and, until recently, Iran’s own substantial shipments, have dulled the blow and made it seem less-serious to ordinary consumers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
The gloves are weathered and white, their brightness dulled by the decades, with the brand name “reusch” across the knuckles and a big, plum-colored sun on top.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2026
A cloud surrounds my head; my senses are all dulled.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
He says this wetter weather has been having "a dulling effect" on the Giant's outline, leaving it greener and less distinct between maintenance work.
From BBC ● May 27, 2026
Paradoxically, it is the unwavering commitment to a narrow range of recognizable figures, dulling in its totality, that turned his signature style into a full-blown brand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026
The higher costs have prompted chocolate makers to raise their prices, dulling consumers' appetite for the sweets.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2025
Kristen Nuss was covered in sand, dulling her neon two-piece swimsuit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2025
Once, when her grandfather stepped out, Olanna had chewed the piece of chalk too and still remembered the dulling potash taste.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
