Standard Lemma guide

dead-alive

adj · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

adj

Meaning 1

Dull; lifeless; lacking originality and vitality.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • 1906, Hilaire Belloc, , introduction to Essays in Literature and History by James Anthony Froude In one epoch lubricity, in another fanaticism, in a third dulness and a dead-alive copying of the past, are the faults which criticism finds to attack.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

2 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: вял (vjal) — Dull; lifeless
  • Bulgarian: скучен (skučen) — Dull; lifeless