dullness

C2+ Topic:Abstract Ideas

Also spelled dulness

US /ˈdʌlnəs/ UK /ˈdʌlnəs/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the quality of being boring, blunt, or lacking sharpness

The lecture's dullness sent half the audience to sleep.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the quality of being... tedium monotony boredom bluntness insipidity banality

Opposites

sharpness brightness brilliance liveliness

Word family

Related forms dull dullard

Etymology

From 'dull' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Dull' is from Old English 'dol' ('foolish, dull, stupid').

dol Old English

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Abstract Ideas Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# dullness

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈdʌlnəs/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈdʌlnəs/

## Meanings
1. the quality of being boring, blunt, or lacking sharpness

## Examples
- The lecture's dullness sent half the audience to sleep.

## Synonyms
- tedium
- monotony
- boredom
- bluntness
- insipidity
- banality

## Antonyms
- sharpness
- brightness
- brilliance
- liveliness

## Related Forms
- dull
- dullard

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dol

## Etymology
From 'dull' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Dull' is from Old English 'dol' ('foolish, dull, stupid').

## AI Etymology
Dullness is from 'dull' + the noun-forming suffix '-ness'. 'Dull' is from Old English 'dol' ('foolish, dull, stupid'). The immediate etymological form is Old English dol. The suffix -ness marks an abstract noun of quality or state, so the English form is shaped by recognizable word formation as well as by its inherited or borrowed base. In present use as a noun, it means "the quality of being boring, blunt, or lacking sharpness", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Related words include dull and dullard.

## Topics
- Abstract Ideas
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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