Numbs

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To cause a loss of physical sensation or emotional responsiveness while leading to a state of insensitivity or emotional detachment
2. To create a state in which sensations or feelings are absent or diminished across both physical and emotional realms
3. Causes a reduction or absence of feeling in the body ; leads to a diminished emotional response or detachment

Etymology: "Numbs" is the third-person singular of the verb "numb," so its history is that of "numb" itself. The root is an old past participle of "nim," meaning "to take," so "numb" originally described something that had been taken or seized, and the sense of deadened feeling grew out of that. The German "benommen," meaning "dazed" or "numb," follows a similar path, and Old Norse had a comparable word, "numinn," so the idea appears across the Germanic languages. The most surprising detail is the letter at the end. The final "b" was added later and was never pronounced, so "numb" is spelled with a silent letter that was attached to an older word without any sound behind it. The "-s" simply marks the present tense, as with any regular verb.

Synonyms: deadens, dulled, insensitizes, blunts, paralyzes

Antonyms: stimulates, awakens, revives, sharpens, intensifies