deaden C2 Topic:Emotions & Feelings US /ˈdɛdən/ See IPA manual Freq #86217 Meanings 1 verb To make a feeling or sensation, especially pain, less strong. The dentist gave him an injection to deaden the pain before drilling. 2 verb To make a sound quieter or muffled. Thick carpets and curtains deaden the noise from the street outside. 3 verb To make something less lively, intense, or active. Years of routine work had deadened her enthusiasm for the job. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 verb · to make a feeling or... blunt 3 verb · to make something less... blunt Word family Forms deadeneddeadeningdeadens Derived forms deadenerdeadeninglyundeadened Etymology AI details From dead + -en. Compare Dutch doden (“to kill”), West Frisian deadzje (“to kill”). Topics Emotions & Feelings Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # deaden **Type:** Word **Level:** C2 **Part of speech:** verb **IPA (US):** /ˈdɛdən/ **Frequency rank:** 86217 ## Meanings 1. To make a feeling or sensation, especially pain, less strong. 2. To make a sound quieter or muffled. 3. To make something less lively, intense, or active. ## Examples - The dentist gave him an injection to deaden the pain before drilling. - Thick carpets and curtains deaden the noise from the street outside. - Years of routine work had deadened her enthusiasm for the job. ## Derived Forms - deadener - deadeningly - undeadened ## Etymology From dead + -en. Compare Dutch doden (“to kill”), West Frisian deadzje (“to kill”). ## AI Etymology Deaden is from dead + -en. Compare Dutch doden (“to kill”), West Frisian deadzje (“to kill”). The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern verbal form is built from the named base and affix. Current senses include to make a feeling or sensation, especially pain, less strong, to make a sound quieter or muffled, and to make something less lively, intense, or active. The wider family includes derived forms such as deadener, deadeningly, and undeadened. ## Topics - Emotions & Feelings - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown