stupefy
English
WOTD – 6 October 2010
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle French stupéfier, from Latin stupefaciō (“strike dumb, stun with amazement, stupefy”), from stupeō (“I am stunned, speechless”) (English stupid, stupor) + faciō (“do, make”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈst(j)upəˌfaɪ/, /ˈst͡ʃupəˌfaɪ/
Audio (US) (file) Audio (AU) (file)
Verb
stupefy (third-person singular simple present stupefies, present participle stupefying, simple past and past participle stupefied)
- (transitive) To dull the senses or capacity to think thereby reducing responsiveness; to dazzle or stun.
- 1917, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, “A Bad Beginning”, in Look! We Have Come Through!, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC, page 77:
- What if I love you!—This misery / Of your dissatisfaction and misprision / Stupefies me.
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
dull the senses or capacity to think
|
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.