dun
EnglishEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle English dun, dunne, from Old English dunn (“dun, dingy brown, bark-colored, brownish black”), from Proto-Germanic *dusnaz (“brown, yellow”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- (“to smoke, raise dust”). Cognate with Old Saxon dun (“brown, dark”), Old High German tusin (“ash-gray, dull brown, pale yellow, dark”), Old Norse dunna (“female mallard; duck”).
Alternative etymology derives the Old English word from Brythonic (compare Middle Welsh dwnn (“dark (red)”)), from Proto-Celtic *dusnos (compare Old Irish donn), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰews- (compare Old Saxon dosan (“chestnut brown”)). More at dusk.
NounEdit
dun (usually uncountable, plural duns)
- A brownish grey colour.
- dun:
TranslationsEdit
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AdjectiveEdit
dun (not comparable)
- Of a brownish grey colour.
- c. 1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene v], lines 48–49, page 134, column 2:
- Come, thick Night,
And pall thee in the dunneſt ſmoake of Hell,
That my keene Knife ſee not the Wound it makes,
Nor Heauen peepe through the Blanket of the darke,
To cry, hold, hold.
- 1609, William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 130”, in Shake-speares Sonnets. […][1], London: By G[eorge] Eld for T[homas] T[horpe] and are to be sold by William Aspley, OCLC 216596634:
- 1827, [John Keble], “Twenty-third Sunday after Trinity”, in The Christian Year: Thoughts in Verse for the Sundays and Holydays throughout the Year, volume II, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] J. Parker; and C[harles] and J[ohn] Rivington, […], OCLC 1029642537, page 85:
- Red o'er the forest glows the setting sun, / The line of yellow light dies fast away / That crown'd the eastern copse, and chill and dun / Falls on the moor the brief November day.
TranslationsEdit
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Derived termsEdit
See alsoEdit
Etymology 2Edit
Unknown; perhaps a variant of din. Several sources suggest origin from Joe Dun, the name of a bailiff known for arresting debtors, but this is controversial.
NounEdit
dun (plural duns)
- (countable) A collector of debts.
- 1933, George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London, Ch. 18:
- Melancholy duns came looking for him at all hours.
- 1970, John Glassco, Memoirs of Montparnasse, New York 2007, p. 102:
- ‘Frank's worried about duns,’ she said as the butler went away.
- An urgent request or demand of payment.
TranslationsEdit
VerbEdit
dun (third-person singular simple present duns, present participle dunning, simple past and past participle dunned)
- (transitive) To ask or beset a debtor for payment.
- 1768, Jonathan Swift, The Works of Dr. Jonathan Swift, London: C. Bathurst, OCLC 459163337, Miscellanies in Verse, page 309:
- And hath she sent so soon to dun?
- 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, Folio Society 1973, p. 577:
- Of all he had received from Lady Bellaston, not above five guineas remained and that very morning he had been dunned by a tradesman for twice that sum.
- (transitive) To harass by continually repeating e.g. a request.
- 1940, Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely, Penguin 2010, p. 107:
- Rich bitches who had to be dunned for their milk bills would pay him right now.
- 1940, Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely, Penguin 2010, p. 107:
TranslationsEdit
Derived termsEdit
Etymology 3Edit
Uncertain; likely from the color.
NounEdit
dun (plural duns)
- (countable) A newly hatched, immature mayfly; a mayfly subimago.
- (countable, fishing) A fly made to resemble the mayfly subimago.
- 1676, Charles Cotton, The Compleat Angler. Being Instructions how to Angle for a Trout or Grayling in a Clear Stream, London: Richard Marriott, and Henry Brome, OCLC 228732346, March, page 59:
- We have besides for this Month a little Dun call'd a whirling Dun (though it is not the whirling Dun indeed, which is one of the best Flies we have) and for this the dubbing must be of the bottom fur of a Squirrels tail and the wing of the grey feather of a Drake.
SynonymsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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Etymology 4Edit
From Irish dún or Scottish Gaelic dùn, from Proto-Celtic *dūnom (“fortress”). Cognate with Welsh dinas (“city”). Doublet of town.
Alternative formsEdit
NounEdit
dun (plural duns)
- An ancient or medieval fortification; especially a hill-fort in Scotland or Ireland.
- 1858, Henry MacLauchlan, Memoir written during a survey of the Roman Wall, through the counties of Northumberland and Cumberland, in the years 1852-1854, London: Printed for private circulation, OCLC 14866297, page 9:
- Pampedun, or Pandon, was probably a place of residence from the earliest times; its sheltered situation for boats, and proximity to the ancient way over the river, protected perhaps by a dun or camp, on the height above [...] possibly gave origin to the ancient name of the place, Pampedun, from the British pant, a hollow, and dun, a fort or camp, Pant-y-dun.
- (archeology) A structure in the Orkney or Shetland islands or in Scotland consisting of a roundhouse surrounded by a circular wall; a broch.
- 2013, T.J. Clarkson, The Makers of Scotland: Picts, Romans, Gaels and Vikings, Edinburgh: Birlinn, →ISBN:
- Smaller than the broch was the dun, another type of stone-built 'roundhouse'.
Etymology 5Edit
See do.
VerbEdit
dun
- (nonstandard, informal) Eye dialect spelling of done: past participle of do
- Now, ya dun it!
- 1895 May 1, S.L.N. Foote, “Correspondence”, in International Journal of Medicine and Surgery[2], volume 8, retrieved 2016–10–13, page 194:
- ...a wise old lady exclaimed, "Why Mrs. M. warn't you orful skeerd wunst when you seed a dog fight? [...] an that ere big yaller dog bit orf your baby's hand that minit; in cors he dun it, so now that settles it."
- (nonstandard, informal) Pronunciation spelling of don't: contraction of do + not.
- 1901, Gilbert Parker, The Right of Way, New York and London: Harper, OCLC 169519:
- Fwhere's he come from, I dun'no'. French or English, I dun'no'. But a gintleman born, I know.
Etymology 6Edit
Likely from the color of fish so prepared.
VerbEdit
dun (third-person singular simple present duns, present participle dunning, simple past and past participle dunned)
- (transitive, dated) To cure, as codfish, by laying them, after salting, in a pile in a dark place, covered with saltgrass or a similar substance.
- 1832, James Thacher, History of Plymouth; from its first settlement in 1620, to the year 1832, Boston: Marsh, Capen & Lyon, OCLC 78447431, page 317:
- Dun-fish are of a superior quality for the table, and are cured in such a manner as to give them a dun or brownish color. Fish for dunning are caught early in spring, and sometimes February, at the Isle of Shoals.
Etymology 7Edit
See dune.
NounEdit
dun (plural duns)
Etymology 8Edit
Imitative.
InterjectionEdit
dun
- (humorous) Imitating suspenseful music.
- 2009, Carrie Tucker, I Love Geeks: The Official Handbook, Avon, Massachusetts: Adams Media, →ISBN:
- How would you deal with that power? (Dun, dun, DUN! Insert dramatic music here.)
ReferencesEdit
- dun in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
AnagramsEdit
BambaraEdit
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
dun
- to eat
ReferencesEdit
- 2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.
DanishEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
dun n (singular definite dunet, plural indefinite dun)
- down (soft, immature feathers)
InflectionEdit
See alsoEdit
- “dun” in Den Danske Ordbog
- “dun” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog
- dun on the Danish Wikipedia.Wikipedia da
DutchEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle Dutch dunne, from Old Dutch *thunni, from Proto-West Germanic *þunnī, from Proto-Germanic *þunnuz. Cognates with English thin (Compare West-Flemish thinne).
AdjectiveEdit
dun (comparative dunner, superlative dunst)
InflectionEdit
Inflection of dun | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
uninflected | dun | |||
inflected | dunne | |||
comparative | dunner | |||
positive | comparative | superlative | ||
predicative/adverbial | dun | dunner | het dunst het dunste | |
indefinite | m./f. sing. | dunne | dunnere | dunste |
n. sing. | dun | dunner | dunste | |
plural | dunne | dunnere | dunste | |
definite | dunne | dunnere | dunste | |
partitive | duns | dunners | — |
AntonymsEdit
Derived termsEdit
DescendantsEdit
- Afrikaans: dun
Etymology 2Edit
See the etymology of the main entry.
VerbEdit
dun
GalicianEdit
EtymologyEdit
From de (“of”) + un (“masculine singular indefinite article”)
ContractionEdit
dun m (feminine dunha, masculine plural duns, feminine plural dunhas)
Further readingEdit
- “dun, dunha” in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega, Royal Galician Academy.
GermanEdit
Alternative formsEdit
EtymologyEdit
Borrowed from Low German duun.
PronunciationEdit
AdjectiveEdit
dun (comparative duner, superlative am dunsten)
- (colloquial, chiefly Northern Germany) drunk
- 1998, “Du (äh, Du)”, in Power, performed by Fischmob:
- Ich war dun die Nacht
Und hatte mit chemischen Drogen aus Amerika herumexperimentiert
Bis ich das Bewußtsein verlor- I was drunk that night / and had experimented with synthetic drugs from America / until I lost consciousness
DeclensionEdit
number & gender | singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine | feminine | neuter | all genders | ||
predicative | er ist dun | sie ist dun | es ist dun | sie sind dun | |
strong declension (without article) |
nominative | duner | dune | dunes | dune |
genitive | dunen | duner | dunen | duner | |
dative | dunem | duner | dunem | dunen | |
accusative | dunen | dune | dunes | dune | |
weak declension (with definite article) |
nominative | der dune | die dune | das dune | die dunen |
genitive | des dunen | der dunen | des dunen | der dunen | |
dative | dem dunen | der dunen | dem dunen | den dunen | |
accusative | den dunen | die dune | das dune | die dunen | |
mixed declension (with indefinite article) |
nominative | ein duner | eine dune | ein dunes | (keine) dunen |
genitive | eines dunen | einer dunen | eines dunen | (keiner) dunen | |
dative | einem dunen | einer dunen | einem dunen | (keinen) dunen | |
accusative | einen dunen | eine dune | ein dunes | (keine) dunen |
number & gender | singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine | feminine | neuter | all genders | ||
predicative | er ist duner | sie ist duner | es ist duner | sie sind duner | |
strong declension (without article) |
nominative | dunerer | dunere | duneres | dunere |
genitive | duneren | dunerer | duneren | dunerer | |
dative | dunerem | dunerer | dunerem | duneren | |
accusative | duneren | dunere | duneres | dunere | |
weak declension (with definite article) |
nominative | der dunere | die dunere | das dunere | die duneren |
genitive | des duneren | der duneren | des duneren | der duneren | |
dative | dem duneren | der duneren | dem duneren | den duneren | |
accusative | den duneren | die dunere | das dunere | die duneren | |
mixed declension (with indefinite article) |
nominative | ein dunerer | eine dunere | ein duneres | (keine) duneren |
genitive | eines duneren | einer duneren | eines duneren | (keiner) duneren | |
dative | einem duneren | einer duneren | einem duneren | (keinen) duneren | |
accusative | einen duneren | eine dunere | ein duneres | (keine) duneren |
number & gender | singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine | feminine | neuter | all genders | ||
predicative | er ist am dunsten | sie ist am dunsten | es ist am dunsten | sie sind am dunsten | |
strong declension (without article) |
nominative | dunster | dunste | dunstes | dunste |
genitive | dunsten | dunster | dunsten | dunster | |
dative | dunstem | dunster | dunstem | dunsten | |
accusative | dunsten | dunste | dunstes | dunste | |
weak declension (with definite article) |
nominative | der dunste | die dunste | das dunste | die dunsten |
genitive | des dunsten | der dunsten | des dunsten | der dunsten | |
dative | dem dunsten | der dunsten | dem dunsten | den dunsten | |
accusative | den dunsten | die dunste | das dunste | die dunsten | |
mixed declension (with indefinite article) |
nominative | ein dunster | eine dunste | ein dunstes | (keine) dunsten |
genitive | eines dunsten | einer dunsten | eines dunsten | (keiner) dunsten | |
dative | einem dunsten | einer dunsten | einem dunsten | (keinen) dunsten | |
accusative | einen dunsten | eine dunste | ein dunstes | (keine) dunsten |
Further readingEdit
- “dun” in Duden online
HunsrikEdit
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
dun
- (auxiliary, with an infinitive) will; to be going (to do something); forms the future tense
- Ich dun das mache.
- I will do that.
- (auxiliary, with an infinitive) to be; forms the progressive aspect
- Was dun-se mache.
- What are they doing.
- to put, to place, to add
- Du mol en bissje Eis in de Suco.
- Put some ice in the juice.
InflectionEdit
infinitive | dun | |
---|---|---|
past participle | gedun | |
auxiliary | hon | |
present tense | conditional tense | |
1st person singular | dun | dääd |
2nd person singular | dust | dääst |
3rd person singular | dud | dääd |
1st person plural | dun | dääde |
2nd person plural | dud | dääd |
3rd person plural | dun | dääde |
imperative | ||
2nd person singular | du | |
2nd person plural | dud | |
Derived termsEdit
Further readingEdit
KiputEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-North Sarawak *daqun, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *dahun (compare Malay daun).
NounEdit
dun
MandarinEdit
RomanizationEdit
dun
- Nonstandard spelling of dūn.
- Nonstandard spelling of dún.
- Nonstandard spelling of dǔn.
- Nonstandard spelling of dùn.
Usage notesEdit
- English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.
Norwegian BokmålEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
dun f or m (definite singular duna or dunen, indefinite plural duner, definite plural dunene)
dun n (definite singular dunet, indefinite plural dun, definite plural duna or dunene)
- down (soft, fine fluffy feathers)
ReferencesEdit
Norwegian NynorskEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
dun f (definite singular duna, indefinite plural duner, definite plural dunene)
dun n (definite singular dunet, indefinite plural dun, definite plural duna)
- down (soft, fine fluffy feathers)
ReferencesEdit
- “dun” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Old EnglishEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Germanic *dūnǭ (“hill, sand dune”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- (“to smoke, fume, raise dust”); or alternatively a late borrowing from Proto-Celtic *dūnom from the same Proto-Indo-European source.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
dūn f
DeclensionEdit
Derived termsEdit
DescendantsEdit
- English: down
Old FrenchEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
dun m (oblique plural duns, nominative singular duns, nominative plural dun)
- (Anglo-Norman) Alternative form of don
- c. 1150, Turoldus, La Chanson de Roland:
- E tute Espaigne tendrat par vostre dun
- And all of Spain he will hold as your gift
SwedishEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
dun n
- down, what grows on young birds
DeclensionEdit
Declension of dun | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | dun | dunet | dun | dunen |
Genitive | duns | dunets | duns | dunens |
Related termsEdit
ReferencesEdit
VolapükEdit
EtymologyEdit
Borrowed from German tun and English do.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
dun (nominative plural duns)