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Dumb vs Hello - What's the difference?

dumb | hello |

In lang=en terms the difference between dumb and hello

is that dumb is to reduce the intellectual demands of while hello is to greet with "hello".

As verbs the difference between dumb and hello

is that dumb is to silence while hello is to greet with "hello".

As an adjective dumb

is (label) unable to speak; lacking power of speech.

As an interjection hello is

.

As a noun hello is

"!" or an equivalent greeting.

dumb

English

Etymology 1

From (etyl) dumb, from (etyl) . In ordinary spoken English, a phrase like "He is dumb" is interpreted as "He is stupid" rather than "He lacks the power of speech". The latter example, however, is the original sense of the word. The senses of stupid'', ''unintellectual'', and ''pointless developed under the influence of the (etyl) word dumm.

Adjective

(er)
  • (label) Unable to speak; lacking power of speech.
  • * Hooker
    • to unloose the very tongues even of dumb creatures
  • (label) Silent; unaccompanied by words.
    • dumb show
  • * Shakespeare
    • This spirit, dumb to us, will speak to him.
  • *
  • * J. C. Shairp
    • to pierce into the dumb past
  • extremely stupid.
    • You are so dumb ! You don't even know how to make toast!
  • (label) Pointless, foolish, lacking intellectual content or value.
    • This is dumb ! We're driving in circles! We should have asked for directions an hour ago!
    Brendan had the dumb job of moving boxes from one conveyor belt to another.
  • Lacking brightness or clearness, as a colour.
  • * De Foe
    • Her stern was painted of a dumb white or dun color.
    Synonyms
    * (unable to speak) dumbstruck, mute, speechless, wordless * (stupid) feeble-minded, idiotic, moronic, stupid * banal, brainless, dopey, silly, stupid, ridiculous, vulgar
    Derived terms
    * dumb as a box of rocks * dumben * dumbhood * dummy * dumbness

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) dumbien, from (etyl) dumbian (more commonly in compound .

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To silence.
  • * 1911 , Lindsay Swift, William Lloyd Garrison , p. 272,
    • The paralysis of the Northern conscience, the dumbing of the Northern voice, were coming to an end.
  • To make stupid.
  • * 2003 , Angela Calabrese Barton, Teaching Science for Social Justice , p. 124,
    • I think she's dumbing us down, so we won't be smarter than her.
  • To represent as stupid.
  • * 2004 , Stephen Oppenheimer, The Real Eve: Modern Man's Journey Out of Africa , p. 107,
    • Bad-mouthing Neanderthals . . . is symptomatic of a need to exclude and even demonize. . . . I suggest that the unproven dumbing of the Neanderthals is an example of the same cultural preconception.
  • To reduce the intellectual demands of.
  • * 2002 , Deborah Meier, In Schools We Trust: Creating Communities of Learning in an Era of Testing , p. 126,
    • The ensuing storm caused the department to lower the bar—amid protests that this was dumbing the test down—so that only 80 percent of urban kids would fail.
    Derived terms
    * dumbness * dumb blonde * dumb down * dumbocracy * dumb-show * dumb terminal * dummy * play dumb

    hello

    English

    Alternative forms

    * hallo * hilloa (obsolete) * hullo (UK)

    Interjection

    (en interjection)
  • * , chapter=7
    • , title= Mr. Pratt's Patients , passage=I made a speaking trumpet of my hands and commenced to whoop “Ahoy!” and “Hello!'” at the top of my lungs.
  • (colloquial)

    • Usage notes

    * The greeting hello is among the most generic and neutral in use. It may be heard in nearly all social situations and in nearly all walks of life, and is unlikely to cause offense.

    Quotations

    * (English Citations of "hello")

    Synonyms

    * (greeting) ** g'day, hey, hi, ** hallo, hi, hiya, ey up ** hallo, hey, hi, howdy ** how's it going, hey, hi ** howzit ** (slang) wassup, what's up, yo, sup * See also

    Antonyms

    * (greeting) bye, goodbye

    Derived terms

    *

    See also

    * * (wikipedia "hello")

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • "!" or an equivalent greeting.
  • * {{quote-news, year=2007, date=April 29, author=Stephanie Rosenbloom, title=A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, work=New York Times citation
    • , passage=In many new buildings, though, neighbors are venturing beyond tight-lipped hellos at the mailbox.}}

    Synonyms

    * greeting

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To greet with "hello".
  • * 2013 , Ivan Doig, English Creek (page 139)
    • I had to traipse around somewhat, helloing' people and being ' helloed , before I spotted my mother and my father, sharing shade and a spread blanket with Pete and Marie Reese and Toussaint Rennie near the back of the park.
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