dim

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See also: Dim, dim., dím, and dìm

Translingual[edit]

Symbol[edit]

dim

  1. (mathematics) dimension

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English dim, dym, from Old English dim, dimm (“dim, dark, gloomy; wretched, grievous, sad, unhappy”), from Proto-Germanic *dimmaz (“dark”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰem- (“to whisk, smoke, blow; dust, haze, cloud; obscure”). Compare Faroese dimmur, Icelandic dimmur (“dark”) and dimma (“darkness”).

Pronunciation[edit]

  • enPR: dĭm, IPA(key): /dɪm/
  • Audio (US)
    		(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪm

Adjective[edit]

dim (comparative dimmer, superlative dimmest)

  1. Not bright or colorful.
    The lighting was too dim for me to make out his facial features.
    • 1821, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Adonais
      that sustaining Love / Which, through the web of being blindly wove / By man and beast and earth and air and sea, / Burns bright or dim
  2. (colloquial) Not smart or intelligent.
    He may be a bit dim, but he's not stupid.
  3. Indistinct, hazy or unclear.
    His vision grew dimmer as he aged.
  4. Disapproving, unfavorable: rarely used outside the phrase take a dim view of.
  5. (music) Clipping of diminished.

Translations[edit]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Noun[edit]

dim (uncountable)

  1. (archaic) Dimness.
    • 1898, H.G. Wells, The War of the Worlds, London: William Heinemann, page 278:
      All about me the Red Weed clambered among the ruins, writhing to get above me in the dim. Night, the Mother of Fear and Mystery, was coming upon me.

Verb[edit]

dim (third-person singular simple present dims, present participle dimming, simple past and past participle dimmed)

  1. (transitive) To make something less bright.
    He dimmed the lights and put on soft music.
  2. (intransitive) To become darker.
    The lights dimmed briefly when the air conditioning was turned on.
  3. To render dim, obscure, or dark; to make less bright or distinct
  4. To deprive of distinct vision; to hinder from seeing clearly, either by dazzling or clouding the eyes; to darken the senses or understanding of.
    • 1740, Christopher Pitt, The Aeneid
      Her starry eyes were dimm'd with streaming tears.

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

Anagrams[edit]

Indonesian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): [ˈdɪm]
  • Hyphenation: dim

Etymology 1[edit]

From Dutch duim.

Noun[edit]

dim (first-person possessive dimku, second-person possessive dimmu, third-person possessive dimnya)

  1. thumb
  2. inch
    Synonym: inci

Etymology 2[edit]

From English dimmer.

Noun[edit]

dim (first-person possessive dimku, second-person possessive dimmu, third-person possessive dimnya)

  1. high-beam headlamp on a road vehicle.

Further reading[edit]

Latvian[edit]

Verb[edit]

dim

  1. 3rd person singular present indicative form of dimēt
  2. 3rd person plural present indicative form of dimēt
  3. (with the particle lai) 3rd person singular imperative form of dimēt
  4. (with the particle lai) 3rd person plural imperative form of dimēt

Norwegian Bokmål[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Old Norse dimmr. Related to English dim and Icelandic dimmur.

Adjective[edit]

dim (neuter singular dimt, definite singular and plural dimme, comparative dimmere, indefinite superlative dimmest, definite superlative dimmeste)

  1. dim
  2. to have bad vision
    Han er dim på synet
    His vision is dim/bad/poor

References[edit]

Norwegian Nynorsk[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From the Old Norse adjective dimmr, from Proto-Germanic *dimmaz. The neuter noun is derived from the adjective. The automotive senses may be a Back-formation from - of the verb dimme.

Adjective[edit]

dim (neuter singular dimt, definite singular and plural dimme, comparative dimmare, indefinite superlative dimmast, definite superlative dimmaste)

  1. gloomy
  2. dim
  3. having bad vision
    Han er dim på synet
    His vision is dim/bad/poor
Related terms[edit]

Noun[edit]

dim m (definite singular dimmen, indefinite plural dimmar, definite plural dimmane)

  1. (automotive, colloquial) a switching of one's headlamps from high-beam to low-beam
  2. (automotive, colloquial) lever, button or other
  3. (dialectal) Clipping of dimme (“twilight, half darkness”).

Noun[edit]

dim n (definite singular dimmet, uncountable)

  1. (dialectal) dimmest, darkest part of the summer night
  2. (dialectal) twilight
    Synonym: skumring

Etymology 2[edit]

Noun[edit]

dim m (definite singular dimmen, indefinite plural dimmar, definite plural dimmane)

  1. (colloquial) Clipping of dimensjon.

References[edit]

Anagrams[edit]

Serbo-Croatian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Slavic *dymъ, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰuh₂mós (“smoke”).

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

dȉm m (Cyrillic spelling ди̏м)

  1. smoke

Declension[edit]

Declension of dim
singular plural
nominative dim dimovi
genitive dima dimova
dative dimu dimovima
accusative dim dimove
vocative dime dimovi
locative dimu dimovima
instrumental dimom dimovima

Derived terms[edit]

Slovene[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Slavic *dymъ, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰuh₂mós (“smoke”).

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

dȉm m inan

  1. smoke

Inflection[edit]

Masculine inan., hard o-stem
nominative dìm
genitive díma
singular
nominative dìm
accusative dìm
genitive díma
dative dímu
locative dímu
instrumental dímom

Further reading[edit]

  • “dim”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran

Sumerian[edit]

Romanization[edit]

dim

  1. Romanization of 𒁴 (dim)

Welsh[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle Welsh dim. Cognate with the rare Old Irish dim (“something, anything”), which may be a Brythonic loanword. Further etymology uncertain. Matasović takes it from Proto-Celtic *dis-smi-, dissimilated from Proto-Indo-European *dus-smi- (literally “bad one”).[1] Morris Jones hypothesizes the original meaning was “share, portion” and derives it from Proto-Celtic *dīsman, from Proto-Indo-European *deh₂y- (“to share”).[2]

Pronunciation[edit]

Adjective[edit]

dim

  1. any
  2. no, not, none

Noun[edit]

dim m (uncountable)

  1. anything
  2. nothing, none, nil, zero

Particle[edit]

dim

  1. not

Usage notes[edit]

As a verbal particle, almost always appears mutated as ddim.

Mutation[edit]

Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal aspirate
dim ddim nim unchanged
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every
possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

Further reading[edit]

  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), chapter DIM, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

References[edit]

  1. ^ Ranko Matasović (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic[1] (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 100
  2. ^ Morris Jones, John (1913) A Welsh Grammar, Historical and Comparative, Oxford: Clarendon Press, page 315
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