dumb

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English

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /dʌm/
  • Rhymes: -ʌm
  • Audio (CA)(file)

Etymology 1

From Middle English dumb (“silent, speechless, mute, ineffectual”), from Old English dumb (“silent, speechless, mute, unable to speak”), from Proto-West Germanic *dumb, from Proto-Germanic *dumbaz (“dull, dumb”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- (“to whisk, smoke, darken, obscure”).

The senses of stupid, unintellectual, and pointless, which are found regularly since the 19th century only, probably developed under the influence of German dumm and Dutch dom. Just like the English word, these originally meant "lacking the power of speech", but they developed the mentioned senses early on.

Cognates

Cognate with Scots dumb (“dumb, silent”), North Frisian dom, domme (“dumb, stupid”), West Frisian dom (“dumb, stupid”), Dutch dom (“dumb, stupid”), German dumm (“dumb, stupid”), Danish dum (“stupid”), Swedish dum (“stupid”), Icelandic dumbur (“dumb, mute”). See also deaf.

Adjective

dumb (comparative dumber, superlative dumbest)

  1. (dated) Unable to speak; lacking power of speech (kept in "deaf, dumb, and blind").
    Synonyms: mute, speechless, wordless
    His younger brother was born dumb, and communicated with sign language.
  2. (dated) Silent; unaccompanied by words.
    dumb show
  3. (informal, derogatory, especially of a person) Extremely stupid.
    Synonyms: feeble-minded, idiotic, moronic, stupid; see also Thesaurus:stupid
    You are so dumb! You don't even know how to make toast!
  4. (figuratively) Pointless, foolish, lacking intellectual content or value.
    Synonyms: banal, brainless, dopey, silly, stupid, ridiculous, vulgar
    This is dumb! We're driving in circles! We should have asked for directions an hour ago!
    Brendan had the dumb job of moving boxes from one conveyor belt to another.
  5. Lacking brightness or clearness, as a colour.
Derived terms
Translations
unable to speak — see mute
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Etymology 2

From Middle English dumben, from Old English dumbian (more commonly in compound ādumbian (“to become mute or dumb; keep silence; hold one’s peace”)), from Proto-Germanic *dumbijaną, *dumbōną (“to be silent, become dumb”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- (“to whisk, smoke, darken, obscure”). Cognate with German verdummen (“to become dumb”).

Verb

dumb (third-person singular simple present dumbs, present participle dumbing, simple past and past participle dumbed)

  1. (dated) To silence.
  2. (transitive) To make stupid.
    • 2003, Angela Calabrese Barton, Teaching Science for Social Justice, page 124:
      I think she's dumbing us down, so we won't be smarter than her.
  3. (transitive) To represent as stupid.
    • 2004, Stephen Oppenheimer, The Real Eve: Modern Man's Journey Out of Africa, page 107:
      Bad-mouthing Neanderthals . . . is symptomatic of a need to exclude and even demonize. . . . I suggest that the unproven dumbing of the Neanderthals is an example of the same cultural preconception.
  4. (transitive) To reduce the intellectual demands of.
    • 2002, Deborah Meier, In Schools We Trust: Creating Communities of Learning in an Era of Testing, page 126:
      The ensuing storm caused the department to lower the bar—amid protests that this was dumbing the test down—so that only 80 percent of urban kids would fail.
Derived terms
Terms derived from the adjective or verb "dumb"

Middle English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Old English dumb.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈdum(b)/, /ˈduːm(b)/

Adjective

dumb (plural and weak singular dumbe)

  1. Lacking or failing to display the faculty of voice:
    1. Unspeaking; unable to speak or having muteness.
    2. (substantive) A mute; one who can't speak.
    3. Temporarily unable to speak due to strong emotions.
    4. Unwilling or reluctant to speak; not speaking.
  2. Powerless, ineffectual (either inherently or due to events)
  3. Unknowledgeable; having no understanding or sense.
  4. (of animals) Unwilling or unable to make a noise; quiet or silent.
  5. (rare) Unrevealing, useless; having no important messages or lessons.
  6. (rare) Having nothing to keep one busy or engaged.
  7. (rare, figurative) Refusing to preach or evangelise.
  8. (rare, figurative) Refusing to be conceited or vainglorious.

Derived terms

Descendants

  • English: dumb
  • Scots: dumb

References

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *dumb.

Pronunciation

Adjective

dumb

  1. mute, dumb (unable to speak)
  2. (substantive) a mute
    • c. 990, Wessex Gospels, Luke 11:14
      Þā hē ūt ādrāf þā dēofolsēocnesse, þā spræc se dumba.
      When he drove out the demon, the mute person spoke.

Declension

Declension of dumb — Strong
Singular Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative dumb dumb dumb
Accusative dumbne dumbe dumb
Genitive dumbes dumbre dumbes
Dative dumbum dumbre dumbum
Instrumental dumbe dumbre dumbe
Plural Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative dumbe dumba, dumbe dumb
Accusative dumbe dumba, dumbe dumb
Genitive dumbra dumbra dumbra
Dative dumbum dumbum dumbum
Instrumental dumbum dumbum dumbum
Declension of dumb — Weak
Singular Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative dumba dumbe dumbe
Accusative dumban dumban dumbe
Genitive dumban dumban dumban
Dative dumban dumban dumban
Instrumental dumban dumban dumban
Plural Masculine Feminine Neuter
Nominative dumban dumban dumban
Accusative dumban dumban dumban
Genitive dumbra, dumbena dumbra, dumbena dumbra, dumbena
Dative dumbum dumbum dumbum
Instrumental dumbum dumbum dumbum

Related terms

Descendants

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