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dun
1[ duhn ]
/ dʌn /
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verb (used with object), dunned, dun·ning.
to make repeated and insistent demands upon, especially for the payment of a debt.
noun
a person, especially a creditor, who duns another.
a demand for payment, especially a written one.
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Origin of dun
1First recorded in 1620–30; origin obscure
Words nearby dun
dumpy level, dum spiro, spero, Dumuzi, dum vivimus, vivamus, Dumyat, dun, Duna, Dünaburg, Dunaj, Dunant, Dunărea
Other definitions for dun (2 of 2)
dun2
[ duhn ]
/ dʌn /
adjective
dull, grayish brown.
dark; gloomy.
noun
Origin of dun
2First recorded before 1000; Middle English don, dun(ne), Old English dun; cognate with Old Saxon dun; probably of Celtic origin; compare Irish donn “dark,” Welsh dwnn “brownish”
OTHER WORDS FROM dun
dunness, nounDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use dun in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for dun (1 of 2)
dun1
/ (dʌn) /
verb duns, dunning or dunned
(tr) to press or importune (a debtor) for the payment of a debt
noun
a person, esp a hired agent, who importunes another for the payment of a debt
a demand for payment, esp one in writing
Word Origin for dun
C17: of unknown origin
British Dictionary definitions for dun (2 of 2)
dun2
/ (dʌn) /
noun
a brownish-grey colour
a horse of this colour
angling
- an immature adult mayfly (the subimago), esp one of the genus Ephemera
- an artificial fly imitating this or a similar fly
adjective dunner or dunnest
of a dun colour
dark and gloomy
Word Origin for dun
Old English dunn; related to Old Norse dunna wild duck, Middle Irish doun dark; see dusk
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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