Dictionary.com

Popular Searches

 Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

bland

1 American  
[bland] / blænd /

adjective

blander, blandest

  1. pleasantly gentle or agreeable.

    a bland, affable manner.
    Synonyms:
    urbane, suave, amiable, mild, affable
    Antonyms:
    boorish, cruel

  2. soothing or balmy, as air.

    a bland southern breeze.
    Synonyms:
    mild, soft
    Antonyms:
    harsh

  3. nonirritating, as food or medicines.

    a bland diet.
    Synonyms:
    mild, soft
    Antonyms:
    irritating

  4. not highly flavored; mild; tasteless.

    a bland sauce.

  5. lacking in special interest, liveliness, individuality, etc.; insipid; dull.

    a bland young man; a bland situation comedy.

  6. unemotional, indifferent, or casual.

    his bland acknowledgment of guilt.
Bland 2 American  
[bland] / blænd /

noun

  1. James A(llen), 1854–1911, U.S. songwriter and minstrel performer.

bland British  
/ blænd /

adjective

  1. devoid of any distinctive or stimulating characteristics; uninteresting; dull

    bland food

  2. gentle and agreeable; suave

  3. (of the weather) mild and soothing

  4. unemotional or unmoved

    a bland account of atrocities
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • blandly adverb
  • blandness noun

Etymology

Origin of bland

First recorded in 1590–1600, bland is from the Latin word blandus of a smooth tongue, pleasant, soothing

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.

Pressure from these investors may also add to the US app feeling "blander" said Mr Navarra.

From BBC

That sort of line is as close as the movie gets to being funny, and the songs, while reasonably tuneful, are bland aural wallpaper.

From The Wall Street Journal

It never feels like Brooks has a grasp on the material, which careens aimlessly through Ella’s harried day-to-day in a handsomely bland, serviceable style.

From Los Angeles Times

He left NBC to become CEO of Discovery, where he took a bland group of cable channels and turned them into a reality-TV juggernaut.

From The Wall Street Journal

It doesn’t help that Gwyn’s books are bland and pleasant while a few pages of Richard’s prose are enough to give his agent a migraine.

From The Wall Street Journal

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.