humdrum
Americanadjective
noun
-
humdrum character or routine; monotony.
-
monotonous or tedious talk.
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Archaic. a dull, boring person.
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
- humdrumness noun
Etymology
Origin of humdrum
1545–55; earlier humtrum, rhyming compound based on hum
Explanation
Something humdrum is dull, tedious, and totally boring. If a regular old photography class sounds too humdrum, you might instead sign up for Underwater Photography of Marine Predators. Don't forget your wetsuit! Anything that you can call humdrum is so severely lacking in variety and excitement that it's sure to make you hum and drum your fingers out of boredom. Humdrum is an adjective to describe the unglamorous monotony of everyday routines. It's the same old thing, again and again, over and over. Humdrum can also mean predictable, mind-numbing and not very challenging — hopefully the complete opposite of your social life.
Vocabulary lists containing humdrum
30 GRE Words Beginning with "G" and "H"
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This Is Not a Drill: Synonyms for "Boring"
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The Chocolate War
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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.
Thankfully for Rovere, director Alan J. Pakula would turn those humdrum parts of “All the President’s Men” into a gripping procedural just two years later, crafting a legendary piece of American cinema in the process.
From Salon • Mar. 7, 2026
Locals here have more humdrum problems to attend to: a slowing economy as investment falls after several big infrastructure projects were completed, labor shortages and rising prices.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 10, 2026
Certainly the humdrum of legislation or bureaucratic rule-marking is nothing like the gossipy speculation about who may or may not bid to lead California as its 41st governor.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 4, 2026
The market had been pretty humdrum for all of November, making the decline at the kickoff of December notable.
From Barron's • Dec. 8, 2025
But I got to keep still, like I’m watching something humdrum.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
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.
