definitions

dun

1
[ duhn ]
/ dʌn /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dun ON THESAURUS.COM

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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RELATED WORDS

dim, stormy, misty, muddy, dreary, cloudy, nebulous, dark, dismal, dirty, foggy, fuzzy, murky, shadowy, overcast, somber, dingy, gloomy, black, drab

Nearby words

dumpy, dumpy level, dumuzi, dumyat, dumézil, dun, dun fly, dun laoghaire, duna, dunaj, dunant

Origin of dun

1
First recorded in 1620–30; origin obscure

Definition for dun (2 of 2)

dun

2
[ duhn ]
/ dʌn /

adjective

dull, grayish brown.
dark; gloomy.

noun

a dun color.
a dun-colored horse with a black mane and tail.
mayfly.
Angling. dun fly.

Origin of dun

2
before 1000; Middle English dun(ne), Old English dunn; cognate with Old Saxon dun

Related forms

dun·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for dun

British Dictionary definitions for dun (1 of 2)

dun

1
/ (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)

dun

2
/ (dʌn) /

noun

a brownish-grey colour
a horse of this colour
angling
  1. an immature adult mayfly (the subimago), esp one of the genus Ephemera
  2. 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 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012