dullness

Name: dullness, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈdʌl.nəs/

//ˈdʌl.nəs// noun

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“dullness” is an uncommon English word, ranked #60,776 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#60,776
frequency rank, English: 8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The quality of being slow of understanding things.

Key facts for dullness
Property	Value
Headword	dullness
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/ˈdʌl.nəs/
Letters	8
Frequency rank	#60,776
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dullness” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). dullness lands here:

#60,776

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for dullness is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdʌl.nəs/. Corpus data places it at rank #60,776 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for dullness, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From dull + -ness. The correct English form is dullness, spelled D-U-L-L-N-E-S-S.

Definition

1
The quality of being slow of understanding things.
2
The quality of being uninteresting; boring; humorless or irksome.
3
Lack of interest or excitement.
4
The lack of visual brilliance; want of sheen.
5
bluntness.
6
The quality of not perceiving or kenning things distinctly.
7
Drowsiness.

Etymology

From dull + -ness.

This word in other languages

obtusité(Français)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "dullness"?

"dullness" is spelled D-U-L-L-N-E-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdʌl.nəs/.

What does "dullness" mean?

As a noun, "dullness" means: The quality of being slow of understanding things.

How do you pronounce "dullness"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dullness" is /ˈdʌl.nəs/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What is the origin of the word "dullness"?

From dull + -ness. See the full etymology section above for more details.

Is PlainSpell free to use?

Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “dullness”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is D-U-L-L-N-E-S-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈdʌl.nəs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.