4  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Dumb  \Dumb\,  v.  t. 
  To  put  to  silence.  [Obs.]  --Shak. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Dumb  \Dumb\,  a.  [AS.  dumb;  akin  to  D.  dom  stupid,  dumb,  Sw 
  dumb,  Goth.  dumbs;  cf  Gr  ?  blind.  See  {Deaf},  and  cf 
  {Dummy}.] 
  1.  Destitute  of  the  power  of  speech;  unable;  to  utter 
  articulate  sounds;  as  the  dumb  brutes. 
 
  To  unloose  the  very  tongues  even  of  dumb  creatures. 
  --Hooker. 
 
  2.  Not  willing  to  speak;  mute;  silent;  not  speaking;  not 
  accompanied  by  words  as  dumb  show 
 
  This  spirit,  dumb  to  us  will  speak  to  him  --Shak. 
 
  To  pierce  into  the  dumb  past.  --  J.  C. 
  Shairp 
 
  3.  Lacking  brightness  or  clearness,  as  a  color.  [R.] 
 
  Her  stern  was  painted  of  a  dumb  white  or  dun  color. 
  --De  Foe. 
 
  {Deaf  and  dumb}.  See  {Deaf-mute}. 
 
  {Dumb  ague},  or  {Dumb  chill},  a  form  of  intermittent  fever 
  which  has  no  well-defined  ``chill.''  [U.S.] 
 
  {Dumb  animal},  any  animal  except  man;  --  usually  restricted 
  to  a  domestic  quadruped;  --  so  called  in  contradistinction 
  to  man,  who  is  a  ``speaking  animal.'' 
 
  {Dumb  cake},  a  cake  made  in  silence  by  girls  on  St  Mark's 
  eve,  with  certain  mystic  ceremonies,  to  discover  their 
  future  husbands.  --Halliwell. 
 
  {Dumb  cane}  (Bot.),  a  west  Indian  plant  of  the  Arum  family 
  ({Dieffenbachia  seguina}),  which  when  chewed,  causes  the 
  tongue  to  swell,  and  destroys  temporarily  the  power  of 
  speech. 
 
  {Dumb  crambo}.  See  under  {crambo}. 
 
  {Dumb  show}. 
  a  Formerly,  a  part  of  a  dramatic  representation,  shown 
  in  pantomime.  ``Inexplicable  dumb  shows  and  noise.'' 
  --Shak. 
  b  Signs  and  gestures  without  words  as  to  tell  a  story 
  in  dumb  show 
 
  {To  strike  dumb},  to  confound;  to  astonish;  to  render  silent 
  by  astonishment;  or  it  may  be  to  deprive  of  the  power  of 
  speech. 
 
  Syn:  Silent;  speechless;  noiseless.  See  {Mute}. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  dumb 
  adj  1:  slow  to  learn  or  understand;  lacking  intellectual  acuity; 
  "so  dense  he  never  understands  anything  I  say  to  him"; 
  "never  met  anyone  quite  so  dim";  "although  dull  at 
  classical  learning,  at  mathematics  he  was  uncommonly 
  quick"-  Thackeray;  "dumb  officials  make  some  really 
  dumb  decisions";  "he  was  either  normally  stupid  or 
  being  deliberately  obtuse";  "worked  with  the  slow 
  students"  [syn:  {dense},  {dim},  {dull},  {obtuse},  {slow}] 
  2:  unable  to  speak  temporarily;  "struck  dumb";  "speechless  with 
  shock"  [syn:  {speechless}] 
  3:  lacking  the  power  of  human  speech;  "dumb  animals" 
  4:  unable  to  speak  because  of  hereditary  deafness  [syn:  {mute}, 
  {silent}] 
 
  From  Easton's  1897  Bible  Dictionary  [easton]: 
 
  Dumb 
  from  natural  infirmity  (Ex.  4:11);  not  knowing  what  to  say 
  (Prov.  31:8);  unwillingness  to  speak  (Ps.  39:9;  Lev.  10:3). 
  Christ  repeatedly  restored  the  dumb  (Matt.  9:32,  33;  Luke  11:14; 
  Matt.  12:22)  to  the  use  of  speech. 
 

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