dowf

English

Alternative forms

• douf, dolf (Scotland)

Etymology

From Middle English [Term?], from Old Norse daufr (“deaf”) (whence also Icelandic daufur (“deaf, dull”)), from Proto-Germanic *daubaz (“deaf”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰūbʰ-, *dʰūp- (“to smoke”). Doublet of daff, deaf, and dof. Compare dove ("to slumber"). More at deaf.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /daʊf/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Adjective

dowf (comparative more dowf, superlative most dowf)

1. Dull; flat; denoting a defect of spirit, animation, or courage; melancholy; gloomy; inactive; listless; lethargic; pithless; vapid; lacking force; frivolous.
2. (of a sound) Dull; hollow.

Derived terms

• dowfness