It is impossible to constantly be in high spirits. Everyday duties, anxiety about relatives and the future, banal fatigue gradually draw vitality from a person. And at some point, others may notice: he suddenly became pale, haggard, dull. This last concept raises the most questions among young people, because in modern Russian there are no obvious root words to draw an analogy. So how did this definition come about?
Pre-Slavic etymology
You can say for sure: in a sense, "drowsy" is a synonym for "lowered" or "inclined" (cf. Polish ponury, from * nur- "lowered"). They also call the word “diving” related to him, when a person quickly plunges into depth relative to his standard position.
Modern reading
The characteristic is capacious and very eloquent. It is not surprising that over many centuries of use, the adjective "dumb" has not changed its meaning at all. The basic interpretation during a conversation about a particular person breaks down into meanings:
- bowed his head;
- limp shoulders;
- hunched back.
Implied are some external manifestations of bad emotions, lack of strength. The person has no motivation, and he is not shy to demonstrate it. From here comes the second interpretation, from which it is easy to read the mood in actions and deeds:
- lack of vigor;
- sad;
- dull;
- sullen.
You can look into the eyes of a colleague and see hopelessness there. If he is dull, it means that he does not have the energy to work and even to simply chat with friends.
The reason for this may be excessive workload and high demands on the authorities. We are not always talking about physical fatigue, although this is the case. More often they suggest a deep psychological problem that affects a person’s perception of the world and its position in it. There is a partial rapprochement with the concept of “depressive,” which in the 21st century has become more relevant and is used more often as associated with a medical term.
Everyday speech
How tactful to use this definition in relation to others? It is very bad if a friend walks dull. This signals the need to spend time together, drink tea with a friend and discuss problems. It is necessary to cope with difficulties together.
However, the word only indicates a mental or physical state, while not being an insult, has a neutral emotional connotation. In some cases, it even denotes a gentle, downward-facing arrangement of natural objects.
Choose the right context, work skillfully with the lexicon, and a conversation with you will return the joy of life to the audience!