dim

1 of 4

adjective

ˈdim 

dimmer; dimmest

1

a

: emitting or having a limited or insufficient amount of light

dim stars

a dim lamp

a dim hallway

b

: dull, lusterless

dim colors

c

: lacking pronounced, clear-cut, or vigorous quality or character

a dim echo of the past

2

a

: seen indistinctly

a dim outline

b

: perceived by the senses or mind indistinctly or weakly : faint

had only a dim notion of what was going on

c

: having little prospect of favorable result or outcome

a dim future

d

: characterized by an unfavorable, skeptical, or pessimistic attitude

—usually used in the phrase take a dim view of

takes a dim view of human nature

3

: dim-witted

too dim to understand the joke

4

: not perceiving clearly and distinctly

dim eyes

dimly adverb

dimmable

ˈdi-mə-bəl 

adjective

dimness noun

dim

2 of 4

verb

dimmed; dimming

transitive verb

1

: to reduce the light from

dim the headlights

2

: to make dim or lusterless

dimmed their hopes of an early settlement

intransitive verb

: to become dim

the lights dimmed

their beauty had dimmed

dim

3 of 4

noun

1

automotive vehicles : low beam

2

archaic : dusk, dimness

dim

4 of 4

abbreviation

1

dimension

2

diminished

3

diminuendo

4

diminutive

Synonyms

Adjective

• black
• caliginous
• dark
• darkened
• darkish
• darkling
• darksome
• dimmed
• dusk
• dusky
• gloomy
• lightless
• murky
• obscure
• obscured
• pitch-black
• pitch-dark
• pitchy
• rayless
• somber
• sombre
• stygian
• tenebrific
• tenebrous
• unlit

Verb

• becloud
• bedim
• befog
• blacken
• blear
• blur
• cloud
• darken
• dislimn
• fog
• fuzz (up)
• haze
• mist
• obscure
• overcast
• overcloud
• overshadow
• shadow
• shroud

Examples of dim in a Sentence

Adjective

Just the dim outline of the building could be seen through the fog.

I have a dim memory of your last visit.

Verb

The latest setback has dimmed hopes of an early settlement.

Hopes of an early settlement have dimmed.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Within the voids, sophisticated observations can detect faint hints of structures, like small, dim dwarf galaxies dotting the vast expanses. —Paul Sutter, Space.com, 6 June 2025

And, quite concretely, reading has always struck me as a passport to the world, one in which characters are more real than actual people, where values are more intense than in the dim light of reality, where characters fly up into destinies rather than paddle around in ambiguity. —James Folta, Literary Hub, 4 June 2025

Verb

As chaos broke out, the lights dimmed, and a spotlight hit the crow's nest, revealing May. —Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 June 2025

However, with revenue projections for the budget year that begins July 1 dimming in the months since the governor made his proposal, legislators approved some new ideas to bring in more money, including changes that would allow Illinois to tax offshore and out-of-state corporate profits. —Dan Petrella, Chicago Tribune, 1 June 2025

Noun

While some golfers only donned solar glasses at the moment of maximum obscurity, others tracked many of their shots through the dim of their commemorative eyewear. —Jack Bantock, CNN, 9 Apr. 2024

Middleton hasn’t been photographed in public—with the exception of two dim (and disputed) paparazzi shots of her in cars—since December. —Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Verb, and Noun

Middle English, from Old English dimm; akin to Old High German timber dark

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing dim

• dim bulb
• dim sum
• dim view
• dim-witted
• take a dim view
• take a dim view of
• takes a dim view
• the dim and distant past

Rhymes for dim

• brim
• clim
• grim
• gym
• him
• hymn
• im
• limb
• mim
• prim
• rim
• scrim

Kids Definition

dim

1 of 2 adjective

ˈdim 

dimmer; dimmest

1

: not bright or clear : obscure, faint

a dim light

2

: being without luster : dull

dim colors

3

a

: not seeing or understanding clearly

dim eyes

b

: not seen or understood clearly

had only a dim notion of what was going on

dimly adverb

dimness noun

dim

2 of 2 verb

dimmed; dimming

1

: to make or become dim

2

: to reduce the light from

Medical Definition

dim

abbreviation

diminished