dulling
dulling — 動詞
- dullingpresent simple I / you / we / they
- dullings3rd person singular
- dullinging-ing form
- dullingedpast simple
1. to make a feeling of pain, sadness, or emotional intensity less strong or sharp,
減弱；麻痺
使感覺或情緒變得不強烈
to make a feeling of pain, sadness, or emotional intensity less strong or sharp, so that it becomes easier to bear; or for such a feeling to become less strong by itself.
The painkiller slowly dulled the ache in Lukas's lower back.
止痛藥慢慢減弱了 Lukas 下背部的疼痛感。
transitive use: medicine dulls physical pain
Years of working in a busy hospital had dulled Karim's emotional response to emergencies.
在忙碌醫院工作多年，已使 Karim 對緊急情況的情緒反應變得麻木。
transitive use: experience dulls emotional reaction
Reema's disappointment was dulled by the sudden offer of a better position.
Reema 的失望因為突然獲得一個更好的職位而減輕了。
As the initial shock wore off, the sharp grief began to dull.
隨著最初的震驚消退，那股強烈的悲傷開始漸漸淡化。
文法句型
dull + noun (pain/emotion)
dull (intransitive: feeling dulls over time)
用法筆記
Commonly used with nouns of negative emotion or physical discomfort: pain, grief, disappointment, anger, ache. The intransitive form describes a natural fading; the transitive form implies an external cause.
常見錯誤
2. to cause a surface, colour, or reflective object to become less bright, shiny, o
變暗淡
使表面或顏色失去光澤
to cause a surface, colour, or reflective object to become less bright, shiny, or vivid; or for such a surface to lose its shine over time.
Constant sunlight had dulled the once-bright paint on the wooden gate.
長期的日曬讓原本鮮亮的木門油漆變得暗淡無光。
transitive: sunlight dulls colour
The silver candlesticks had dulled after years of sitting in a damp cellar.
那些銀燭台在潮濕的地下室放了好幾年，光澤早已褪去。
intransitive: metal dulls in dampness
Hyun sprayed a layer of varnish that dulled the vibrant colours of the painting.
Hyun 噴了一層亮光漆，結果讓畫作鮮豔的色彩變得暗沉。
The mirror's surface had dulled with age, softening every reflection.
那面鏡子隨著年月變得模糊，讓每一道倒影都柔和了起來。
文法句型
dull + noun (surface/colour/paint)
dull (intransitive: surface dulls)
用法筆記
Frequently used of metals, paint, mirrors, and photographic surfaces. The intransitive form often describes natural ageing or environmental exposure.
3. to take away the sharpness of a cutting implement such as a knife or pair of sci
弄鈍
使刀鋒失去銳利度
to take away the sharpness of a cutting implement such as a knife or pair of scissors, stopping it from cutting well; or for a blade edge to grow blunt through repeated use.
Cutting through cardboard boxes quickly dulled the blade of Joaquín's new knife.
切了幾次紙箱之後，Joaquín 的新刀很快就鈍了。
transitive: cutting dulls blade
Nkechi warned her son that using her sewing scissors on paper would dull them.
Nkechi 告誡兒子，拿她的縫紉剪刀去剪紙會把剪刀弄鈍。
transitive: misuse dulls scissors
The old chef's cleaver had dulled after thousands of hours on the chopping block.
那位老廚師的菜刀在剁切了無數個小時之後，已經變得不太鋒利了。
Using the kitchen shears to cut plastic packaging dulled them very quickly.
用廚房剪刀去剪塑膠包裝，很快就把它們弄鈍了。
- blunt
more common in everyday use; interchangeable with 'dull' for blades
文法句型
dull + noun (knife/blade/scissors)
dull (intransitive: blade dulls)
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 2 (LOSE SHINE): this sense applies to cutting edges only, not surfaces or colours. The intransitive form is common in descriptions of tool wear.
常見錯誤
dulling — 形容詞
- dullingpositive
- more dullingcomparative
- most dullingsuperlative
1. not interesting, exciting, or enjoyable in any way; making you feel bored.
無聊的
不有趣、不吸引人
not interesting, exciting, or enjoyable in any way; making you feel bored.
The three-hour lecture on tax law was so dull that Paul struggled to stay awake.
那場長達三小時的稅法講座枯燥無味，Paul 努力撐著才沒睡著。
dull + event/lecture
Dario found the museum tour incredibly dull and kept checking the time on his phone.
Dario 覺得博物館導覽乏味至極，一直看手機上的時間。
find + object + dull
After the first season, the TV show became dull and completely predictable.
那部電視劇播完第一季之後，就變得無聊又老套。
Liam's weekend was dull — he spent most of it doing laundry and filling out forms.
Liam 的週末過得很乏味——大部分時間都在洗衣服和填表格。
- boring
more conversational and direct; used at all levels
- tedious
suggests slowness and tiresome length beyond mere lack of interest
- monotonous
implies repetitiveness that causes boredom
- interesting
holding attention; the opposite of boring
- exciting
causing strong positive emotion or interest
用法筆記
This is by far the most frequent sense of 'dull'. Often used with events, tasks, books, films, conversations, and routines. Less strong than 'tedious' or 'monotonous'.
常見錯誤
2. lacking brightness, strong colour, or shine; appearing faded, dark, or muted in
暗淡的
不鮮明、無光澤
lacking brightness, strong colour, or shine; appearing faded, dark, or muted in appearance.
The old photograph had faded to a dull shade of yellow and brown.
那張老照片已經褪成暗沉的黃褐色。
dull + colour shade
The sky was a dull grey, and rain seemed likely at any moment.
天空是一片暗灰，隨時都可能下雨。
dull + weather/light
Jisoo chose a fabric in a dull blue that looked soft and understated.
Jisoo 選了一塊暗藍色的布料，看起來低調而柔和。
The once-golden metal had become dull and covered in dark spots.
那塊曾經金閃閃的金屬變得黯淡無光，到處都是黑斑。
用法筆記
Describes visual appearance — weather, colours, surfaces, and lighting. 'Dull' sky means cloudy or overcast; 'dull' colour means low saturation, not vibrant.
3. (of a sound or a physical feeling) not sharp, loud, or clearly defined; low in i
隱隱；沉悶
不尖銳的聲音或疼痛
(of a sound or a physical feeling) not sharp, loud, or clearly defined; low in intensity and often lasting a long time.
Nkechi felt a dull ache in her knee whenever the weather grew cold and damp.
每當天氣變得又冷又潮溼，Nkechi 就會感到膝蓋隱隱作痛。
collocation: dull ache
A dull thud came from the flat above, followed by complete silence.
樓上傳來一聲沉悶的重響，然後就完全安靜了下來。
collocation: dull thud
A dull pressure behind his eyes made reading hard, but the pain was not sharp.
眼睛後方一陣鈍鈍的壓迫感讓他很難閱讀，不過那種痛不是刺痛。
From the basement came a dull boom that shook the floorboards beneath Lukas's feet.
地下室傳來一聲沉悶的轟響，震得 Lukas 腳下的地板都在抖動。
用法筆記
Commonly paired with nouns for body sensations (ache, pain, pressure) and impact sounds (thud, thump, boom). The opposite would be 'sharp', 'piercing', or 'ringing'.
常見錯誤
4. not quick to understand, learn, or think; lacking mental sharpness or intelligen
遲鈍的
理解或學習速度慢
not quick to understand, learn, or think; lacking mental sharpness or intelligence.
The teacher tried to be patient with the duller students, repeating each step slowly.
那位老師盡量對理解力較慢的學生保持耐心，每一步都慢慢重複講解。
comparative: duller students
Karim felt dull and unfocused after two nights of very little sleep.
Karim 連續兩晚沒睡好，覺得自己腦袋遲鈍、無法集中精神。
temporary state: feel + dull
The textbook repeated every concept three times, as if written for the dullest possible reader.
那本教科書每個概念都重複三遍，彷彿是為理解力最差的讀者編寫的。
Amihan felt dull and groggy all morning after the long-haul flight from Manila.
Amihan 從馬尼拉搭長途航班抵達後，整個上午都覺得頭腦遲鈍、昏昏沉沉。
- slow
gentler and more common; less harsh than 'dull'
- dim-witted
informal and somewhat dismissive
- stupid
stronger and more direct; can be offensive
用法筆記
Can describe either a permanent trait or a temporary state (as in Karim's example). This sense can be offensive when applied to a person's general intelligence — use with caution.
常見錯誤
5. having a cutting edge or point that is not sharp enough to cut or pierce easily;
鈍的
刀口不鋒利
having a cutting edge or point that is not sharp enough to cut or pierce easily; blunt.
The kitchen knife was so dull that it could not slice a ripe tomato.
那把菜刀鈍到連一顆成熟的番茄都切不動。
so + dull + that-clause
Paul tried to carve the chicken with a dull blade and tore the meat apart.
Paul 用一把鈍刀切雞肉，結果把肉都扯碎了。
dull blade + result
Tamar sharpened the dull axe on a whetstone before heading out to chop wood.
Tamar 在磨刀石上把鈍斧頭磨利，才出門去砍柴。
The scissors were so dull that Jisoo tore the fabric instead of cutting it.
那把剪刀鈍到 Jisoo 只好用撕的方式來裁布。
- blunt
more common in everyday English; interchangeable with 'dull' for blades
- sharp
having a fine edge able to cut easily
用法筆記
The opposite of 'sharp'. 'Blunt' is the more common everyday word; 'dull' is slightly more literary for this sense. Applies to knives, scissors, axes, needles, and other edged tools.