inane
English edit
Etymology edit
From Middle French inane, from Latin inānis (“empty, vain, useless”) which is of unknown origin.
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
inane (comparative inaner or more inane, superlative inanest or most inane)
- Lacking sense or meaning, often to the point of boredom or annoyance.
- 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXIX, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 237:
- Francesca followed, reluctant enough in her secret; for though she would not have admitted it even to herself, she did shrink from the infliction of the inane solemnities with which her father garnished his discourse—to say nothing of the ungracious reflections which so often glanced at herself.
- 2020, Brit Bennett, The Vanishing Half, Dialogue Books, page 156:
- God, if she had to listen to another conversation about some kid she didnʼt know—how Tina J. stole the stage at the talent show or Bobby R. won the tee ball game or any other number of inane accomplishments.
- Purposeless; pointless.
- 1832, [Isaac Taylor], Saturday Evening. […], London: Holdsworth and Ball, →OCLC:
- Vague and inane instincts.
Derived terms edit
Translations edit
lacking sense or meaning
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purposeless; pointless
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Noun edit
inane (plural inanes)
- That which is void or empty.
- 1689 (indicated as 1690), [John Locke], chapter 2, in An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding. […], London: […] Eliz[abeth] Holt, for Thomas Basset, […], →OCLC, book I, page 13:
- The undistinguishable inane of infinite space.
- 1881, Robert Louis Stevenson, Virginibus Puerisque:
- [...] whom we watch as we watch the clouds careering in the windy, bottomless inane, or read about like characters in ancient and rather fabulous annals.
Anagrams edit
Italian edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
inane (plural inani) (literary)
- (rare) empty, void, hollow
- useless, vain, inane
- Synonyms: inconcludente, infruttuoso, inutile, (literary) irrito, vano
- Antonym: utile
Derived terms edit
Further reading edit
- inane in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
Anagrams edit
Latin edit
Pronunciation edit
- (Classical) IPA(key): /iˈnaː.ne/, [ɪˈnäːnɛ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /iˈna.ne/, [iˈnäːne]
Adjective edit
ināne
Noun edit
ināne n (genitive inānis); third declension
Declension edit
Third-declension noun (neuter, “pure” i-stem).
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | ināne | inānia |
Genitive | inānis | inānium |
Dative | inānī | inānibus |
Accusative | ināne | inānia |
Ablative | inānī | inānibus |
Vocative | ināne | inānia |
References edit
- “inane”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “inane”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- inane in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
- (ambiguous) rich in ideas: sententiis abundans or creber (opp. sententiis inanis)
- (ambiguous) mere words; empty sound: inanis verborum sonitus
- (ambiguous) senseless rant: inanium verborum flumen
- (ambiguous) to be misled by a vain hope: inani, falsa spe duci, induci
- (ambiguous) rich in ideas: sententiis abundans or creber (opp. sententiis inanis)
Portuguese edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
- Hyphenation: i‧na‧ne
Adjective edit
inane m or f (plural inanes)
Related terms edit
Spanish edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Adjective edit
inane m or f (masculine and feminine plural inanes)
Related terms edit
Further reading edit
- “inane”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014