51³Ô¹Ï

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View synonyms for

dumb

[duhm]

adjective

dumber, dumbest 
  1. lacking intelligence or good judgment; stupid; dull-witted.

  2. lacking the power of speech (offensive when applied to humans).

    a dumb animal.

  3. temporarily unable to speak.

    dumb with astonishment.

  4. refraining from any or much speech; silent.

  5. made, done, etc., without speech.

  6. lacking some usual property, characteristic, etc.

  7. performed in pantomime; mimed.

  8. Computers.Ìýpertaining to the inability to do processing locally.

    A dumb terminal can input, output, and display data, but cannot process it.

  9. Nautical.Ìý

    1. (of a barge) without means of propulsion.

    2. (of any craft) without means of propulsion, steering, or signaling.



verb phrase

  1. InformalÌýto make or become less intellectual, simpler, or less sophisticated.

    to dumb down a textbook; American movies have dumbed down.

dumb

/ »åÊŒ³¾ /

adjective

  1. lacking the power to speak, either because of defects in the vocal organs or because of hereditary deafness

  2. lacking the power of human speech

    dumb animals

  3. temporarily lacking or bereft of the power to speak

    struck dumb

  4. refraining from speech; uncommunicative

  5. producing no sound; silent

    a dumb piano

  6. made, done, or performed without speech

  7. informalÌý

    1. slow to understand; dim-witted

    2. foolish; stupid See also dumb down

  8. (of a projectile or bomb) not guided to its target

“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
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Sensitive Note

Dumb in the sense “lacking the power of speech†is perceived as insulting when describing humans (but not animals), probably because dumb also means “stupid; dull-witted.†The noun dummy in the sense “person who lacks the power of speech†is also perceived as insulting, as are the terms deaf-and-dumb, deaf-mute, and mute. The adjective hard of hearing is acceptable though not the term of choice, partly because it lacks directness. The preferred term is deaf, which makes no reference to an inability to speak or communicate; the capitalized word Deaf signals membership in this community.
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Other 51³Ô¹Ï Forms

  • dumbly adverb
  • dumbness noun
  • quasi-dumb adjective
  • quasi-dumbly adverb
  • ˈ»å³Ü³¾²ú²Ô±ð²õ²õ noun
  • ˈ»å³Ü³¾²ú±ô²â adverb
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51³Ô¹Ï History and Origins

Origin of dumb1

First recorded before 1000; Old English; cognate with Old Norse dumbr, Gothic dumbs, Old Saxon dumb, Old High German tump, German dumm
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51³Ô¹Ï History and Origins

Origin of dumb1

Old English; related to Old Norse dumbr, Gothic dumbs, Old High German tump
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Yusuf resigned suddenly from the role on Thursday, shortly after saying it was "dumb" for new Reform MP Sarah Pochin to call on the prime minister to ban the burka.

From

It was the prelapsarian age of the dumb phone, when we weren’t all taking photos of everything all the time and paparazzi were commanding six figures for shots of Angelina Jolie’s baby bump.

From

The following day Yusuf, who is a Muslim, posted on X: "I do think it's dumb for a party to ask the PM if they would do something the party itself wouldn't do".

From

This concept is not new: The Greek philosopher Socrates was afraid that the invention of writing would make humans dumber because we wouldn’t exercise our memory as much.

From

I’m sorry for posing such dumb questions, especially since the answer to all of them is “kind of.â€

From

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Du Maurierdumb ague