Library / English Dictionary

DIM

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

Irregular inflected forms: dimmed    , dimmer    , dimmest    , dimming   

 I. (adjective) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Lacking in light; not bright or harsh

Example:

subdued lights and soft music

Synonyms:

dim; subdued

Classified under:

Adjectives

Similar:

dark (devoid of or deficient in light or brightness; shadowed or black)

Derivation:

dimness (the property of lights or sounds that lack brilliance or are reduced in intensity)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Made dim or less bright

Example:

we like dimmed lights when we have dinner

Synonyms:

dim; dimmed

Classified under:

Adjectives

Similar:

low-beam (used of headlights)

Derivation:

dimness (the state of being poorly illuminated)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Slow to learn or understand; lacking intellectual acuity

Example:

worked with the slow students

Synonyms:

dense; dim; dull; dumb; obtuse; slow

Classified under:

Adjectives

Similar:

stupid (lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Lacking clarity or distinctness

Example:

a few wispy memories of childhood

Synonyms:

dim; faint; shadowy; vague; wispy

Classified under:

Adjectives

Similar:

indistinct (not clearly defined or easy to perceive or understand)

Derivation:

dimness (the quality of being dim or lacking contrast)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Offering little or no hope

Example:

took a dim view of things

Synonyms:

black; bleak; dim

Classified under:

Adjectives

Similar:

hopeless (without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Become vague or indistinct

Example:

The distinction between the two theories blurred

Synonyms:

blur; dim; slur

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "dim" is one way to...):

weaken (become weaker)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "dim"):

efface; obliterate (remove completely from recognition or memory)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Sense 2

Meaning:

Make dim by comparison or conceal

Synonyms:

blind; dim

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "dim" is one way to...):

darken (make dark or darker)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make dim or lusterless

Example:

Time had dimmed the silver

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "dim" is one way to...):

darken (make dark or darker)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sense 4

Meaning:

Become dim or lusterless

Example:

the lights dimmed and the curtain rose

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "dim" is one way to...):

change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Sense 5

Meaning:

Switch (a car's headlights) from a higher to a lower beam

Synonyms:

dim; dip

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "dim" is one way to...):

change intensity (increase or decrease in intensity)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

It had all been so clear, if only my own sight had not been dimmed.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I warrant that there are more sound ones than sorry, for he is quick at his work and a trifle dim in the eye.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Inability to see clearly in dim light.

(Nyctalopia, NCI Thesaurus)

The first of those sorrows which are sent to wean us from the earth had visited her, and its dimming influence quenched her dearest smiles.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

Already we were in her dust, so that we could see nothing but the dim scarlet blur in the heart of it, rocking and rolling, with its outline hardening at every stride.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Failure or imperfection of vision at night or in dim light, with good vision only on bright days.

(Night Blindness, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)

A disorder characterized by an inability to see clearly in dim light.

(Night Blindness, NCI Thesaurus/CTCAE)

However, because the planet's host star is much dimmer than the sun, the planet is much colder than Earth — a little colder, in fact, than Jupiter's icy moon Europa.

(Newfound Frozen World Orbits in Binary Star System, NASA)

Since moons outside our solar system – known as exomoons – cannot be imaged directly, their presence is inferred when they pass in front of a star, momentarily dimming its light.

(Astronomers Find First Evidence of Possible Moon Outside Our Solar System, NASA)

Astronomy enthusiasts and scientists alike were excitedly hoping to find out more about this unprecedented dimming.

(ESO Telescope Sees Surface of Dim Betelgeuse, ESO)