deafening
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deafening
Explanation
When a sound is deafening, it's overwhelmingly loud. You may think you're prepared after a flash of lightning, but the deafening sound of thunder can still make you jump! Deafening noises are so loud that they block out all other sounds. The deafening siren from a passing ambulance easily overwhelms the quiet conversation at your breakfast table, and a deafening roar inside a music venue may make you regret your decision to see your favorite band live. While deafen means "make deaf," deafening generally means something closer to "making you temporarily unable to hear."
Vocabulary lists containing deafening
Turn It Up! Synonyms for "Loud"
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 3
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Unit 1, Week 5
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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.
When the buyer’s answer isn’t good enough, Miranda is forced to find another way for Runway to forge on, amid the deafening sound of a ticking clock.
From Salon • May 6, 2026
The noise - lasting and deafening - rose up and swirled around like a typhoon, gathering up everybody in its vicinity, delirious Hearts folk thrilled to be sucked into the vortex.
From BBC • May 4, 2026
The most painful part of waiting is not often not the delay itself, but the deafening silence as you sit looking at the clock ticking by.
From MarketWatch • May 1, 2026
The fan experience was highlighted by a memorable and deafening 2009 final at Dodger Stadium featured a Japan victory over South Korea in a game that many observers said was the loudest they ever attended.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026
Everyone was talking at once; the noise was deafening.
From "The Book of Three" by Lloyd Alexander
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.
