dim

[dim]

See more synonyms for dim on Thesaurus.com

adjective, dim·mer, dim·mest.

not bright; obscure from lack of light or emitted light: a dim room; a dim flashlight.
not seen clearly or in detail; indistinct: a dim object in the distance.
not clear to the mind; vague: a dim idea.

not brilliant; dull in luster: a dim color.
not clear or distinct to the senses; faint: a dim sound.
not seeing clearly: eyes dim with tears.
tending to be unfavorable; not likely to happen, succeed, be favorable, etc.: a dim chance of winning.
not understanding clearly.
rather stupid; dim-witted.

verb (used with object), dimmed, dim·ming.

to make dim or dimmer.
to switch (the headlights of a vehicle) from the high to the low beam.

verb (used without object), dimmed, dim·ming.

to become or grow dim or dimmer.

Verb Phrases

dim out, (in wartime) to reduce the night illumination of (a city, ship, etc.) to make it less visible from the air or sea, as a protection from enemy aircraft or ships.

Idioms

take a dim view of, to regard with disapproval, skepticism, or dismay: Her mother takes a dim view of her choice of friends.

Origin of dim

before 1000; Middle English, Old English dim(me), cognate with Old Frisian dim, Old Norse dimmr

Related formsdim·ly, adverbdim·ma·ble, adjectivedim·ness, nounun·dim, adjectiveun·dim·ly, adverbun·dimmed, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for dim on Thesaurus.com

3. unclear, faint, indefinite, indistinct, fuzzy, hazy. 10. darken, cloud. 12. dull, fade.

Synonym study

1. See dark.

dim.¹

(in prescriptions) one-half.

Origin of dim.¹

From the Latin word dīmidius

dim.²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for dim

Contemporary Examples

Justin gazed out from the dim interior as more than 300 police motorcycles from dozens of jurisdictions rumbled past.
Choking Back Tears, Thousands of Cops Honor Fallen Officer Ramos
Michael Daly
December 28, 2014
Below, the thick marshland and dim lights created a scene that Breman describes as “Joseph Conrad territory.”
The Original Ebola Hunter
Abby Haglage
September 14, 2014
In a dim backroom of a mud hut in Save, 82-year-old Teresa Nyirabutunda sits propped upright in bed by her daughter, Francine.
After the Genocide, Rwanda’s Widows Aging Alone
Nina Strochlic
August 31, 2014
My concerns about the study do not dim my admiration for the fund itself or the work that it does.
How to Tell When a Scientific Study Is Total B.S.
Russell Saunders
August 22, 2014
For a place with a past stretching into the dim mists, this is the architectural equivalent of a historical death.
The Deadly Trap Behind D-Day’s Beaches
Clive Irving
June 5, 2014

Historical Examples

Percival made his way toward one of them with a dim notion that he might be concerned.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
They lay together in the big bed, dim, face to face, talking.
Life and Death of Harriett Frean
May Sinclair
How will he despise what he can grasp, for the sake of the dim glory that eludes him!
Other Tales and Sketches
Nathaniel Hawthorne
But now some dim perception of this truth began to wake in her.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
Even in that dim light there could be no mistaking those features.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for dim

dim

adjective dimmer or dimmest

badly illuminateda dim room
not clearly seen; indistinct; fainta dim shape
having weak or indistinct visioneyes dim with tears
lacking in understanding; mentally dull
not clear in the mind; obscurea dim memory
lacking in brilliance, brightness, or lustrea dim colour
tending to be unfavourable; gloomy or disapproving (esp in the phrase take a dim view)

verb dims, dimming or dimmed

to become or cause to become dim
(tr) to cause to seem less bright, as by comparison
US and Canadian (tr) to switch (car headlights) from the main to the lower beamAlso called (in Britain and certain other countries): dip

Derived Formsdimly, adverbdimness, noun

Word Origin

Old English dimm; related to Old Norse dimmr gloomy, dark

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

Word Origin and History for dim

adj.

Old English dimm "dark, gloomy, obscure," from Proto-Germanic *dimbaz (cf. Old Norse dimmr, Old Frisian dim, Old High German timber "dark, black, somber"). Not known outside Germanic. Slang sense of "stupid" is from 1892. Related: Dimly; dimness.

v.

c.1200, perhaps in Old English, from dim (adj.). Related: Dimmed; dimming.

dim in Medicine

dim.

abbr.

dimidius (half)

Idioms and Phrases with dim

dim

see take a dim view.

dim

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Synonyms

Synonym study

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Origin of dim.1

dim.2

Examples from the Web for dim

Contemporary Examples

Justin gazed out from the dim interior as more than 300 police motorcycles from dozens of jurisdictions rumbled past.

Below, the thick marshland and dim lights created a scene that Breman describes as “Joseph Conrad territory.”

In a dim backroom of a mud hut in Save, 82-year-old Teresa Nyirabutunda sits propped upright in bed by her daughter, Francine.

My concerns about the study do not dim my admiration for the fund itself or the work that it does.

For a place with a past stretching into the dim mists, this is the architectural equivalent of a historical death.

Historical Examples

Percival made his way toward one of them with a dim notion that he might be concerned.

They lay together in the big bed, dim, face to face, talking.

How will he despise what he can grasp, for the sake of the dim glory that eludes him!

But now some dim perception of this truth began to wake in her.

Even in that dim light there could be no mistaking those features.

dim