Blunten

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To reduce the sharpness or forcefulness of something, making it less pointed or severe
2. To weaken or dull an edge, feeling, or effect so it is not as keen or strong as before
3. To cause something pointed or strong to become less effective, intense, or acute

Etymology: "Blunten" is a German verb meaning to dull the edge of something, and it is built in the most ordinary way: the adjective "blunt" with the verbal suffix "-en" added to turn it into an action. The adjective "blunt" is the source of the sense "dull," so the verb simply means to make something blunt. The word works as a plain German formation, with no borrowing, mythic coinage or dramatic shift in meaning behind it. Its meaning stays close to the adjective from which it comes, so the easiest way to understand it is to picture a knife or tool that has lost its sharpness through use and then to think of the verb as describing that loss of edge.

Synonyms: dull, abrade

Antonyms: sharpen, sharpening