deaden

[ ded-n ]

verb (used with object)

1. to make less sensitive, active, energetic, or forcible; weaken:

   to deaden sound; to deaden the senses; to deaden the force of a blow.

   Synonyms: dull, numb, lessen, diminish, blunt

2. to lessen the velocity of; retard:

   to deaden the headway of a ship.

3. to make impervious to sound, as a floor.

verb (used without object)

1. to become dead.

deaden

/ ˈdɛdən /

verb

1. to make or become less sensitive, intense, lively, etc; damp or be damped down; dull
2. tr to make acoustically less resonant

   he deadened the room with heavy curtains

Derived Forms

• ˈdeadening, adjective
• ˈdeadener, noun

Other Words From

• deaden·er noun
• un·deadened adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of deaden¹

First recorded in 1655–65; dead + -en ¹

Example Sentences

And the shine from his latest gold medal hasn’t come close to deadening.

From Los Angeles Times

In the dressing room, Welch was "crawling around and banging my head on the floor, trying desperately to deaden the pain within", she wrote.

From BBC

The truth, however, is the obscure word - meaning "to deaden" - is the name of a police-led training exercise.

From BBC

But it also has a deadening clockwork quality.

From Los Angeles Times

And the unique geology of the city of Kyiv, built on wetlands and flood plains, deadens signals from explosions, researchers say.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• desensitize
• impair