1. Wanting the sense of hearing, either wholly or in part; unable to perceive sounds; hard of hearing; as, a deaf man. Come on my right hand, for this ear is deaf. Shak.
2. Unwilling to hear or listen; determinedly inattentive; regardless; not to be persuaded as to facts, argument, or exhortation; — with to; as, deaf to reason. O, that men's ears should be To counsel deaf, but not to flattery! Shak.
3. Deprived of the power of hearing; deafened. Deaf with the noise, I took my hasty flight. Dryden.
4. Obscurely heard; stifled; deadened. [R.] A deaf murmur through the squadron went. Dryden.
5. Decayed; tasteless; dead; as, a deaf nut; deaf corn. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Halliwell. If the season be unkindly and intemperate, they [peppers] will catch a blast; and then the seeds will be deaf, void, light, and naught. Holland. Deaf and dumb, without the sense of hearing or the faculty of speech. See Deaf-mute.
DEAF
Deaf, v. t.
Defn: To deafen. [Obs.] Dryden.
DEAFEN
Deaf"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Deafened; p. pr. & vb. n. Deafening.]
Etym: [From Deaf.]
1. To make deaf; to deprive of the power of hearing; to render incapable of perceiving sounds distinctly. Deafened and stunned with their promiscuous cries. Addison.
2. (Arch.)