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What does dim mean?

Definitions for dim
dɪmdim

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word dim.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. dim, subduedadjective

    lacking in light; not bright or harsh

    "a dim light beside the bed"; "subdued lights and soft music"

  2. dim, faint, shadowy, vague, wispyadjective

    lacking clarity or distinctness

    "a dim figure in the distance"; "only a faint recollection"; "shadowy figures in the gloom"; "saw a vague outline of a building through the fog"; "a few wispy memories of childhood"

  3. dimmed, dimadjective

    made dim or less bright

    "the dimmed houselights brought a hush of anticipation"; "dimmed headlights"; "we like dimmed lights when we have dinner"

  4. black, bleak, dimadjective

    offering little or no hope

    "the future looked black"; "prospects were bleak"; "Life in the Aran Islands has always been bleak and difficult"- J.M.Synge; "took a dim view of things"

  5. dense, dim, dull, dumb, obtuse, slowverb

    slow to learn or understand; lacking intellectual acuity

    "so dense he never understands anything I say to him"; "never met anyone quite so dim"; "although dull at classical learning, at mathematics he was uncommonly quick"- Thackeray; "dumb officials make some really dumb decisions"; "he was either normally stupid or being deliberately obtuse"; "worked with the slow students"

  6. dim, dipverb

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

  7. dimverb

    become dim or lusterless

    "the lights dimmed and the curtain rose"

  8. dimverb

    make dim or lusterless

    "Time had dimmed the silver"

  9. blind, dimverb

    make dim by comparison or conceal

  10. blur, dim, slurverb

    become vague or indistinct

    "The distinction between the two theories blurred"

Wiktionary

  1. dimverb

    To make something less bright.

    He dimmed the lights and put on soft music.

  2. dimverb

    To become darker.

    The lights dimmed briefly when the air condition was turned on.

  3. dimadjective

    Not bright or colorful.

    The lighting was too dim for me to make out his facial features.

  4. dimadjective

    Not smart or intelligent.

    He may be a bit dim, but he's not retarded.

  5. dimadjective

    Indistinct, hazy or unclear.

    His vision grew dimmer as he aged.

  6. dimadjective

    Disapproving, unfavorable:

  7. Etymology: dimm. Compare and.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. DIMadjective

    Etymology: dimme , Saxon; dy, Welsh; dow, Erse.

    For her true form, how can my spark discern,
    Which, dim by nature, art did never clear? Davies.

    The understanding is dim, and cannot by its natural light discover spiritual truths. John Rogers, Sermons.

    We might be able to aim at some dim and seeming conception, how matter might begin to exist by the power of that eternal first Being. John Locke.

    Something, as dim to our internal view,
    Is thus perhaps the cause of all we do. Alexander Pope, Epist. i.

    Her face right wond’rous fair did seem to be,
    That her broad beauty’s beam great brightness threw
    Through the dim shade, that all men might it see. Fai. Qu.

  2. To Dimverb

    Etymology: from the adjective.

    As where the Almighty’s lightning brand does light,
    It dims the dazed eyen, and daunts the senses quite. Fa. Qu.

    It hath been observed by the ancients, that much use of Venus doth dim the sight; and yet eunuchs, which are unable to generate, are nevertheless also dim sighted. Francis Bacon, N. Hist.

    Every one declares against blindness, and yet who almost is not fond of that which dims his sight? John Locke.

    For thee I dim these eyes, and stuff this head,
    With all such reading as was never read. Alexander Pope, Dunciad.

    A ship that through the ocean wide,
    By conduct of some star doth make her way,
    When as a storm hath dimm’d her trusty guide,
    Out of her course doth wander far astray. Edmund Spenser.

    Sister, have comfort: all of us have cause
    To wail the dimming of our shining star;
    But none can help our harms by wailing them. William Shakespeare, R. III.

    Thus while he spake, each passion dimm’d his face,
    Thrice chang’d. John Milton, Paradise Lost, b. iv. l. 114.

ChatGPT

  1. dim

    The term "dim" can have different meanings based on its context. Here are few general definitions: 1. As an adjective, it mainly describes something as being not bright or clear due to a lack of light. 2. In physics, it is used to refer to the decrease in brightness. 3. In the context of mathematics, or specifically linear algebra, "dim" stands for dimension, referring to the number of coordinates needed to specify a point in the space. 4. Similarly, in Computer Programming, 'dim' is a keyword in Visual Basic used to declare and allocate storage space for a variable. 5. In literature, it could be used as a metaphor to suggest a lack or limitation in perception, understanding, or insight. So, it is vital to refer the term 'dim' to the given context or field for accurate interpretation.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Dim

    not bright or distinct; wanting luminousness or clearness; obscure in luster or sound; dusky; darkish; obscure; indistinct; overcast; tarnished

  2. Dim

    of obscure vision; not seeing clearly; hence, dull of apprehension; of weak perception; obtuse

  3. Dimverb

    to render dim, obscure, or dark; to make less bright or distinct; to take away the luster of; to darken; to dull; to obscure; to eclipse

  4. Dimverb

    to deprive of distinct vision; to hinder from seeing clearly, either by dazzling or clouding the eyes; to darken the senses or understanding of

  5. Dimverb

    to grow dim

Wikidata

  1. DIM

    . DIM Motor Company, a Greek automobile maker, was created by Georgios Dimitriadis as a successor to his earlier company, Bioplastic S.A., which had produced the Attica automobile. The DIM represented one more effort by Mr. Dimitriadis to design and develop a modern car entirely by his company's own means. A 400cc, air-cooled, 2-cylinder, 30-hp engine was also developed in-house to power the vehicle, but due to delays in the engine development, the car was introduced with a 600cc engine and other mechanical parts of the Fiat 126 model. A 650cc Fiat engine was also used, in an improved version. The car was finally introduced at the Geneva Motor Show in 1977, and for this reason received more publicity than most Greek vehicles, appearing in many international publications. All development work had been made in a factory intended for its production in Acharnes, while the company was advertised in the Greek press; plans were also made for more versions, including a sports coupe. However, the costs involved—mostly for bureaucratic reasons—and the car's poor prospects in the Greek market resulted in termination of production after only about ten had been produced. The whole project was abandoned in 1982, having been Georgios Dimitriadis' last venture in the automotive industry. For more than 20 years, Mr. Dimitriadis had fought Greek bureaucracy and laws that effectively prohibited production of locally developed passenger cars, with significant costs in capital and resources.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Dim

    dim, adj. not bright or distinct: obscure: mysterious: not seeing clearly.—v.t. to make dark: to obscure.—v.i. to become dim:—pr.p. dim′ming; pa.p. dimmed.—adv. Dim′ly.—adj. Dim′mish, somewhat dim.—n. Dim′ness. [A.S. dim; akin to Ice. dimmr, dark, and Ger. dämmerung, twilight.]

Suggested Resources

  1. DIM

    What does DIM stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the DIM acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. DIM

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Dim is ranked #58876 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Dim surname appeared 344 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Dim.

    69.4% or 239 total occurrences were Asian.
    16.5% or 57 total occurrences were White.
    10.1% or 35 total occurrences were Black.
    2.3% or 8 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.

Matched Categories

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

Anagrams for dim »

  1. IDM

  2. MDI

  3. mid

How to pronounce dim?

How to say dim in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of dim in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of dim in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of dim in a Sentence

  1. Jonathan Davis:

    These telescopes were designed to look for diffuse light around galaxies. Not in the context of dark matter, but you can repurpose the data to look for this glow, [The Dragonfly telescopes] are really good at looking for this high contrast between the really bright galactic center and the really dim outskirts of galaxies.

  2. Milan Kundera:

    The light that radiates from the great novels time can never dim, for human existence is perpetually being forgotten by man and thus the novelists discoveries, however old they may be, will never cease to astonish.

  3. Tabetha Boyajian:

    Dust is most likely the reason why the star's light appears to dim and brighten, the new data shows that different colors of light are being blocked at different intensities. Therefore, whatever is passing between us and the star is not opaque, as would be expected from a planet or alien megastructure.

  4. Paloma Garcia-Lee:

    To sit in a Broadway theater and the lights start to dim, it's not like the TV show you've been watching, broadway happens on one place on Earth in New York City in those select theaters. It's magic.

  5. Renae A. Sauter:

    In a seemingly dark and troubled world, there are hundreds and thousands of lightworkers, standing strong, refusing to dim their lights. Look for the light workers they are all around you. Follow them back to the light

more sentences »

Popularity rank by frequency of use

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References

Translations for dim

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

  • خافتArabic
  • помътнявам, замъглен, потъмнявам, неясен, мътенBulgarian
  • tmavý, mdlýCzech
  • schummrig, dämmerig, dämlichGerman
  • σκοτεινός, θολός, θαμπός, δυσδιάκριτος, αμυδρός, θαμπώνω, κουτός, θολώνωGreek
  • malheliEsperanto
  • tenue, tontoSpanish
  • himmeäFinnish
  • bête, indistinct, ternir, tamisé, faible, flouFrench
  • כההHebrew
  • homályos, fénytelen, színtelen, opálos, ködbe vesző, elmosódottHungarian
  • tonto, fioca, annebbiare, indistinta, oscuro, tonta, offuscare, fioco, debole, oscura, indistinto, affievolirsi, annerire, affievolire, abbassareItalian
  • ほの暗い, 薄暗いJapanese
  • blāvsLatvian
  • dimmen, dom, afblinden, schemerig, verduisteren, schemerachtig, mat, donker, vaagDutch
  • dimt, dim, dimmeNorwegian
  • Fraco, indistinto, escurecer, ofuscar, obtuso, sombrio, burro, opacoPortuguese
  • tern, vagRomanian
  • неясный, тусклый, тупой, затемнять, тускнеть, смутныйRussian
  • మసకTelugu
  • สลัวThai
  • тусклоUkrainian
  • 暗淡Chinese

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    a bright spot on the parhelic circle; caused by diffraction by ice crystals
    A tithe
    B scalawag
    C swathing
    D sundog

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