Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Material used for soundproofing.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A device or material employed to deaden or render dull.
- noun A tract of land on which the trees have been killed by girdling.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun The act of making something futile and useless (as by routine).
- adjective Rendering less lively, intense, or vigorous.
- adjective So lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb Present participle of
deaden .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun the act of making something futile and useless (as by routine)
- adjective so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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Another problem is that often within them lies what I call the deadening paradox.
Slugger O'Toole 2009
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• He finds driving a car "deadening," so he takes a bus to work from his home, reading or working on his laptop during the commute.
Taking on Google by Learning From Ants Nick Wingfield 2010
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Was this an expression of the "deadening" of the human spirit that takes place in Florida?
"My hollow shell gives you the finger." Ann Althouse 2009
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Blocked feelings lead to a "deadening" of our emotions
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At the same time, having acknowledged my asexuality, men no longer inspire the kind of deadening fear they always have in me: so it is sad and not relieving when Sebastian merely taps me on the shoulder in the computer lab, says "hey," and rushes out.
evolver Diary Entry evolver 2004
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It seems reasonable, on the evidence herein presented, to class alcohol among the narcotic or "deadening" drugs, such as ether or chloroform.
How to Live Rules for Healthful Living Based on Modern Science Eugene Lyman Fisk 1907
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He stared at the big chimney of the powerhouse, as tall as the trunk of a poplar in a "deadening" at home, and covered with vines to the top, and he wondered what on earth that could be.
The Heart of the Hills John Fox 1891
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Soon once more we were in underbrush and presently came square against a staked-and-ridered worm fence around a "deadening" dense with tall corn.
The Flower of the Chapdelaines George Washington Cable 1884
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I had walked on for some distance, without meeting any object of special interest, when, passing through a large "deadening,"
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At the same time it's a kind of deadening question for journalists to be asking of other journalists.
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