bland

See also: Bland and blând

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /blænd/
• Rhymes: -ænd

• Audio (CA):

  (file)

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin blandus (“pleasant, flattering”).

Adjective

bland (comparative blander, superlative blandest)

1. Having a soothing effect; not irritating or stimulating.

   a bland oil;  a bland diet

2. Lacking in taste, flavor, or vigor.

   The coffee was bland.

   • 2012, John Shepherd, ‎David Horn, Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World

     First and foremost, alternative country artists generally claim to reject mainstream country music as musically indistinguishable from bland pop music, as lyrically superficial, and as having no artistic merit […]

3. Lacking interest; boring; dull.
4. (now rare) Mild; soft, gentle, balmy; smooth in manner; suave.
   • 1818, John Keats, Sonnet:

     Where didst thou find, young Bard, thy sounding lyre? / Where the bland accent, and the tender tone?

   • Template:RQ:Chmbrs YngrSt

     “A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron; […]. ¶ Near her wandered her husband, orientally bland, invariably affable, and from time to time squinting sideways, as usual, in the ever-renewed expectation that he might catch a glimpse of his stiff, retroussé moustache.

Derived terms

• blanden
• blandness

Translations

Mild; dull; soft; gentle; smooth in manner; suave

• Bulgarian: мек (bg) (mek), нежен (bg) (nežen), ласкав (bg) (laskav)
• Dutch: mild (nl), zacht (nl)
• Finnish: väritön (fi), mitäänsanomaton (fi), vaisu (fi)
• French: doux (fr) m, douce (fr) f
• Galician: suave (gl) m or f
• German: mild (de), sanft (de)
• Greek: ήπιος (el) m (ípios), μαλακός (el) m (malakós), απαλός (el) m (apalós)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Interlingue: ,
• Italian: blando (it) m
• Polish: delikatny (pl), łagodny (pl) m
• Portuguese: suave (pt)
• Romanian: prevenitor (ro) m, afabil (ro), gentil (ro), pritenos
• Russian: мя́гкий (ru) (mjáxkij), не́жный (ru) (néžnyj), ла́сковый (ru) (láskovyj)
• Spanish: tenue (es), desabrido (es), simple (es), suave (es), débil (es), insípido (es) m
• Swedish: mild (sv), vän (sv), blid (sv)

Having a soothing effect; not irritating or stimulating

• Bulgarian: приятен (bg) (prijaten), успокояващ (bg) (uspokojavašt)
• Danish: sød (da) c
• Dutch: mild (nl), zacht (nl)
• Finnish: mitäänsanomaton (fi)
• French: doux (fr) m, douce (fr) f
• German: mild (de), sanft (de)
• Greek: πράος (el) m (práos), ήπιος (el) m (ípios)
• Interlingua: blande
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: blando (it) m
• Polish: uspakajający m
• Portuguese: suave (pt)
• Romanian: prietenos (ro) m, blând (ro), liniștitor (ro) m
• Russian: прия́тный (ru) (prijátnyj), успока́ивающий (ru) (uspokáivajuščij)
• Spanish: suave (es)
• Swedish: mild (sv)

Lacking in taste or vigor

• Bulgarian: безвкусен (bg) (bezvkusen)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 乏味的 (fáwèide)

• Czech: mdlý (cs)
• Dutch: smaakloos (nl), flauw (nl)
• Eastern Bontoc: lamset
• Finnish: mitäänsanomaton (fi), mieto (fi), mauton (fi)
• French: fade (fr) m or f
• German: fad (de), geschmacklos (de)
• Greek: άνοστος (el) m (ánostos), άγευστος (el) m (ágefstos)
• Italian: insipido (it), fiacco (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Maori: waimeha, makiha, mākihakiha
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: smakløs (no), intetsigende

• Persian: بی‌مزه (fa) (bi-maze)
• Polish: bezbarwny (pl) m, mdły (pl) m, nijaki (pl) m, bez smaku
• Portuguese: insosso (pt)
• Russian: безвку́сный (ru) (bezvkúsnyj), неинтере́сный (ru) (neinterésnyj)
• Spanish: soso (es), insulso (es), ñoño (es), insípido (es) m, desabrido (es) m
• Swedish: fadd (sv), smaklös (sv), svag (sv), mild (sv), intetsägande (sv), lam (sv), tam (sv)
• Tagalog: matabang
• Vietnamese: lạt (vi), nhạt (vi)

Etymology 2

(deprecated template usage) From Middle English blanden, blonden, from Old English blandan (“to blend, mix, mingle; trouble, disturb, corrupt”), from Proto-Germanic *blandaną (“to mix, blend”). Cognate with Icelandic blanda, Norwegian, Danish blande, Swedish blanda. See also blend.

Verb

bland (third-person singular simple present blands, present participle blanding, simple past and past participle blanded)

1. (transitive, UK dialectal) To mix; blend; mingle.
2. (transitive, UK dialectal) To connect; associate.

Etymology 3

From Middle English bland, from Old English bland, blond (“blending, mixture, confusion”), from Proto-Germanic *blandą (“a mixing, mixture”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰlendʰ- (“to grow turbid, dim, see badly, be blind”). Cognate with Icelandic blanda (“a mixture of liquids, especially of hot whey and water”).

Alternative forms

• blaind, blaund (Scotland)

Noun

bland (plural blands)

1. (UK dialectal) Mixture; union.
2. A summer beverage prepared from the whey of churned milk, common among the inhabitants of the Shetland Islands.

Derived terms

• in bland

References

• “bland”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

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Danish

Verb

bland

1. (deprecated template usage) imperative of blande

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German

Etymology

From Latin blandus.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

bland (not comparable)

1. (medicine) bland

Further reading

• “bland” in Duden online

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Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /plant/
• Rhymes: -ant

Noun

bland n (genitive singular blands, no plural)

1. mix

Declension

declension of bland

n-s	singular
	indefinite	definite
nominative	bland	blandið
accusative	bland	blandið
dative	blandi	blandinu
genitive	blands	blandsins

Derived terms

• bland í poka

Related terms

• blanda

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Norwegian Bokmål

Verb

bland

1. (deprecated template usage) imperative of blande

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Norwegian Nynorsk

Verb

bland

1. imperative of blande

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Swedish

Pronunciation

• audio:

  (file)

Preposition

bland

1. among