as in boring
causing weariness, restlessness, or lack of interest
she leads a humdrum life that will never be made into a major motion picture a humdrum meal
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in monotony
a tedious lack of variety
loathed the humdrum of daily life in a small town
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of humdrum
Belinda Luscombe, Time, 6 Dec. 2025
Poised at the end of a humdrum interglacial, in an otherwise chilly corner of Earth history, industrial civilization is emitting carbon dioxide at a clip 10 times faster than the apocalyptic volcanoes of the end-Permian mass extinction.
—Peter Brannen, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Rachel Kurzius, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Certainly the humdrum of legislation or bureaucratic rule-marking is nothing like the gossipy speculation about who may or may not bid to lead California as its 41st governor.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for humdrum
Adjective
Not all of them were hits, but nearly all of them were worth stopping and really looking at, a burst of visual peculiarity in an often humdrum urban streetscape.
—Belinda Luscombe, Time, 6 Dec. 2025
Poised at the end of a humdrum interglacial, in an otherwise chilly corner of Earth history, industrial civilization is emitting carbon dioxide at a clip 10 times faster than the apocalyptic volcanoes of the end-Permian mass extinction.
—Peter Brannen, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Noun
No, no, nothing as humdrum as all that.
—Rachel Kurzius, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Certainly the humdrum of legislation or bureaucratic rule-marking is nothing like the gossipy speculation about who may or may not bid to lead California as its 41st governor.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for humdrum
Recent Examples of Synonyms for humdrum
Adjective
-
This season has an annoying habit of taking what is an easy vote, trying to confuse us into getting excited that something interesting is going to happen, only for the easy and most boring thing to happen in the end.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The boring machine can excavate to extreme depths, according to a report.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
That’s why workouts like Monday morning’s help to break up the monotony.—
Chad Bishop,
AJC.com,
20 Mar. 2026
-
But that monotony is the status quo in Chicago.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Collective processes involve tiring negotiations, frequent conflicts, and disappointing compromises, both internally among the team and with external interlocutors and partners.—
Adam Szymczyk,
Artforum,
2 Apr. 2026
-
This can occasionally become tiring, and the back half of the record is littered with tracks that work better as gay WrestleMania intros than as actual songs.—
Harry Tafoya,
Pitchfork,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Italian nonne stirred pots full of sauce with a look of utter boredom and, here and there, Neapolitan ragazzi sat atop their motorini and gawped at the torture.—
Douglas Stuart,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
-
In some cases, however, there’s more to a creeping sense of boredom than just stability.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The first concert starts with Ciani’s signature ocean sounds before Cunningham’s chords—dull, glassy—add an atonal sheen.—
Andrew Ryce,
Pitchfork,
9 Apr. 2026
-
These changes can leave your skin feeling dry, dull, and more sensitive than before.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Amore approaches the song with all the vocal ferocity of a wind chime; MORI’s chorus repeats the title phrase in monotone.—
E.R. Pulgar,
Pitchfork,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Here is an echoey and relatively quiet limestone room full of people — Mondragon’s deep laconic monotone would attract attention in a second.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Or maybe this was a slow roll, meant to culminate with the two All-Stars crescendoing into the playoff push.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
10 Apr. 2026
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Feed Forever Goldy® Arborvitae annually in early spring with a balanced, slow-release fertilizer.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
With the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline topping a multiyear high of $4 a gallon, according to AAA, inflation-weary commuters are having a tough time absorbing the energy shock.—
Jessica Guynn,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
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Nike’s recovery was already coming at a tough time as a global trade war dented its efforts to improve profitability and drive sales from inflation-weary shoppers.—
Gabrielle Fonrouge,Jessica Golden,Jacob Pramuk,
CNBC,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Humdrum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/humdrum. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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