Adjacent Words

Lull definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

LULL, v.t. [L. lallo. The sense is to throw down, to still, to appease. Seamen say, the wind lulls, when it subsides.]
To quiet; to compose; to cause to rest. The nation may be lulled into security.
- To lull him soft asleep.
Such sweet compulsion doth in music lie, to lull the daughters of necessity.
LULL, v.i. To subside; to cease; to become calm; as, the wind lulls.
LULL, n. Power or quality of soothing.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a pause during which things are calm or activities are diminished; "there was never a letup in the noise" [syn: letup, lull]
2: a period of calm weather; "there was a lull in the storm" [syn: lull, quiet] v
1: calm by deception; "Don't let yourself be lulled into a false state of security"
2: become quiet or less intensive; "the fighting lulled for a moment" [syn: lull, calm down]
3: make calm or still; "quiet the dragons of worry and fear" [syn: calm, calm down, quiet, tranquilize, tranquillize, tranquillise, quieten, lull, still] [ant: agitate, charge, charge up, commove, excite, rouse, turn on]

Merriam Webster's

I. transitive verb Etymology: Middle English; probably of imitative origin Date: 14th century 1. to cause to sleep or rest ; soothe 2. to cause to relax vigilance <were lulled into a false sense of security> II. noun Date: 1719 1. archaic something that lulls; especially lullaby 2. a temporary pause or decline in activity <the early-morning lull in urban noise>: as a. a temporary calm before or during a storm b. a temporary drop in business activity

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v. 1 tr. soothe or send to sleep gently. 2 tr. (usu. foll. by into) deceive (a person) into confidence (lulled into a false sense of security). 3 tr. allay (suspicions etc.) usu. by deception. 4 intr. (of noise, a storm, etc.) abate or fall quiet. --n. a temporary quiet period in a storm or in any activity. Etymology: ME, imit. of sounds used to quieten a child

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lull Lull, v. i. To become gradually calm; to subside; to cease or abate for a time; as, the storm lulls.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lull Lull, n. 1. The power or quality of soothing; that which soothes; a lullaby. [R.] --Young. 2. A temporary cessation of storm or confusion.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Lull Lull, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lulled; p. pr. & vb. n. Lulling.] [Akin to OD. lullen to sing to sleep, G. lullen, Dan. lulle, Sw. lulla; all of imitative origin. Cf. Loll, Lollard.] To cause to rest by soothing influences; to compose; to calm; to soothe; to quiet. `` To lull him soft asleep.'' --Spenser. Such sweet compulsion doth in music lie, To lull the daughters of necessity. --Milton.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(lulls, lulling, lulled) 1. A lull is a period of quiet or calm in a longer period of activity or excitement. There was a lull in political violence after the election of the current president. ...a lull in the conversation. N-COUNT: oft N in n 2. If you are lulled into feeling safe, someone or something causes you to feel safe at a time when you are not safe. It is easy to be lulled into a false sense of security... Lulled by almost uninterrupted economic growth, too many European firms assumed that this would last for ever. VERB: be V-ed into n/-ing, V-ed, also V n into n/-ing 3. If someone or something lulls you, they cause you to feel calm or sleepy. With the shutters half-closed and the calm airy height of the room to lull me, I soon fell into a doze... Before he knew it, the heat and hum of the forest had lulled him to sleep. VERB: V n, V n into/to n 4. If you describe a situation as the lull before the storm, you mean that although it is calm now, there is going to be trouble in the future. PHRASE: v-link PHR

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. Compose, quiet, calm, still, hush, tranquillize, put to rest. II. v. n. Subside, cease, abate, decrease, diminish, become calm. III. n. Calm, calmness, temporary quiet, cessation.

Moby Thesaurus

abate, abeyance, allay, alleviate, anesthetize, anticyclone, appease, assuage, awful silence, balm, becalm, benumb, breach, break, breath, breather, breathing place, breathing space, breathing spell, breathing time, caesura, calm, calm down, calmness, cease, cease-fire, cessation, cigarette break, cocktail hour, coffee break, comma, compose, cool, cradle, cushion, day off, dead, dead calm, dead of night, deaden, deaden the pain, deathlike calm, deathlike silence, delay, die down, diminish, doldrums, dope, dormancy, downtime, drop, drug, dulcify, dull, dwindle, ease, ease matters, ease off, ebb, enforced respite, entrance, even out, fall, fissure, flat calm, foment, gap, gentle, give relief, golden silence, half time, half-time intermission, halt, happy hour, hesitation, hiatus, hibernation, holiday, horse latitudes, hush, hush of night, hypnotize, immobility, inaction, inactiveness, inactivity, inaudibility, inertia, interim, interlude, intermezzo, intermission, intermittence, interregnum, interruption, interval, lacuna, lapse, lay, layoff, lessen, let up, letup, lucid stillness, lull to sleep, magnetize, mesmerize, mitigate, moderate, molder, mollify, motionlessness, mum, narcotize, noiselessness, numb, off-time, oily calm, pacify, pad, palliate, pause, peace, peacefulness, plateau, point of repose, poultice, pour balm into, pour oil on, put to sleep, put under, qualify, quell, quiesce, quiescence, quiet, quiet spell, quieten, quietness, quietude, recess, reduce, relief, relieve, remission, respite, rest, resting point, rock, rock to sleep, salve, sedate, settle, silence, silentness, slacken, slake, smooth, smooth down, smooth over, smoothen, soften, solemn silence, soothe, soundlessness, spell, stabilize, stand-down, stay, steady, still, stillness, stop, stupe, subdue, subside, surcease, suspension, tacitness, taciturnity, tea break, temper, time off, time out, tomblike silence, trance, tranquilize, tranquillity, truce, underactivity, vacation, wane, whisht, windlessness