Source etymology 1
Original entry ↗Unable to speak; lacking power of speech. · Not talkative; taciturn or unwilling to speak. · Having no input or voice in running things. · Unaccompanied by words or speech, silent, wordless.
From Middle English dumb (“silent, speechless, mute, ineffectual”), from Old English dumb (“silent, speechless, mute, unable to speak”), from Proto-West Germanic *dumb, from Proto-Germanic *dumbaz (“dull, dumb”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- (“to whisk, smoke, darken, obscure”). The senses of stupid, unintellectual, and pointless, which are found regularly since the 19th century only, probably developed under the influence of German dumm and Dutch dom. Just like the English word, these originally meant "lacking the power of speech", but they developed the aforementioned senses early on. Cognates Cognate with Scots dumb (“dumb, silent”), North Frisian dom, domme (“dumb, stupid”), West Frisian dom (“dumb, stupid”), Dutch dom (“dumb, stupid”), German dumm (“dumb, stupid”), Danish dum (“stupid”), Swedish dum (“stupid”), Icelandic dumbur (“dumb, mute”). See also deaf.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
- Root classification mention*dʰewbʰ-ine-pro
- Inherited-form mentiondumbenm · silent, speechless, mute, ineffectual
- Inherited-form mentiondumbang · silent, speechless, mute, unable to speak
- Inherited-form mention*dumbgmw-pro
- Inherited-form mention*dumbazgem-pro
- Inherited-form mention*dʰewbʰ-ine-pro
- Derivation mentiondummde
- Derivation mentiondomnl
- Cognate mentiondumbsco
- Cognate mentiondomfrr
- Cognate mentiondomfy
- Cognate mentiondomnl
- Cognate mentiondummde
- Cognate mentiondumda
- Cognate mentiondumsv
- Cognate mentiondumburis
This page abbreviates 6 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.
Inspect preserved source fields
Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.
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"expansion": "Danish dum (“stupid”)"
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"Unable to speak; lacking power of speech.",
"Not talkative; taciturn or unwilling to speak.",
"Having no input or voice in running things.",
"Unaccompanied by words or speech, silent, wordless."
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