deadening

American  

[ded-n-ing] / ˈdɛd n ɪŋ /

noun

1. a device or material employed to deaden or render dull.

2. a device or material preventing the transmission of sound.

3. a woodland in which the trees are killed by girdling prior to being cleared.

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Etymology

Origin of deadening

First recorded in 1775–85; deaden + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

The decision still means joy or despair, but the virtual nature of acceptance and rejection, the evidence of no human hand, is a little deadening.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 16, 2026

Likewise, many well-known geniuses like Billy Wilder, Otto Preminger and Fritz Lang, who were chased out of Europe by the Nazis, brilliantly exposed the hypocrisies and soul deadening conformity of mainstream American culture.

From Salon • Jan. 1, 2026

If You're Glad I'll Be Frank imagined the speaking clock as a real woman speaking live, her internal monologue utterly at odds with the deadening repetitiveness of endlessly intoning "at the third stroke..."

From BBC • Nov. 29, 2025

They were trying to return from popular Emerald Bay to their west side home in midafternoon when eight-foot swells swamped the boat, deadening the engine and capsizing the vessel off rocky Rubicon Point near D.L.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 30, 2025

Where students are most in need of help is where the most stripped-down, deadening material is put in front of them.

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove

Related Words

• calming