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Boring

 [bawr-ing, bohr-]   Example Sentences Origin

bor·ing

1   [bawr-ing, bohr-]
noun
1.
Machinery.
a.
the act or process of making or enlarging a hole.
b.
the hole so made.
2.
Geology. a cylindrical sample of earth strata obtained by boring a vertical hole.
3.
borings, the chips, fragments, or dust produced in boring.
Origin:
1400–50; late Middle English; see bore1, -ing1

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Boring is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.
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Example Sentences
  • Insinuating as a corkscrew boring into a tender cork.
  • It can make a photo mysterious—or just plain boring.
  • People take cars for walkable trips in part because such trips are boring and unattractive.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

bor·ing

2   [bawr-ing, bohr-]
adjective
causing or marked by boredom: a boring discussion; to have a boring time.
Origin:
1835–45; bore2 + -ing2

Related forms
bor·ing·ly, adverb
bor·ing·ness, noun

Synonyms
dull, tiresome, tedious.

bore

1   [bawr, bohr] verb, bored, bor·ing, noun
verb (used with object)
1.
to pierce (a solid substance) with some rotary cutting instrument.
2.
to make (a hole) by drilling with such an instrument.
3.
to form, make, or construct (a tunnel, mine, well, passage, etc.) by hollowing out, cutting through, or removing a core of material: to bore a tunnel through the Alps; to bore an oil well 3000 feet deep.
4.
Machinery. to enlarge (a hole) to a precise diameter with a cutting tool within the hole, by rotating either the tool or the work.
5.
to force (an opening), as through a crowd, by persistent forward thrusting (usually followed by through or into); to force or make (a passage).
verb (used without object)
6.
to make a hole in a solid substance with a rotary cutting instrument.
7.
Machinery. to enlarge a hole to a precise diameter.
8.
(of a substance) to admit of being bored: Certain types of steel do not bore well.
noun
9.
a hole made or enlarged by boring.
10.
the inside diameter of a hole, tube, or hollow cylindrical object or device, such as a bushing or bearing, engine cylinder, or barrel of a gun.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English borian; cognate with Old High German borōn, Old Norse bora, Latin forāre

Related forms
bore·a·ble, bor·a·ble, adjective

Can be confused: board, bored, committee, council, panel, trust (see synonym note at trust).

Synonyms
1. perforate, drill. 10. caliber.

bore

2   [bawr, bohr] verb, bored, bor·ing, noun
verb (used with object)
1.
to weary by dullness, tedious repetition, unwelcome attentions, etc.: The long speech bored me.
noun
2.
a dull, tiresome, or uncongenial person.
3.
a cause of ennui or petty annoyance: repetitious tasks that are a bore to do.
Origin:
1760–70; of uncertain origin

Synonyms
1. fatigue, tire, annoy.

Antonyms
1. amuse; thrill, enrapture.

bore

4   [bawr, bohr]
verb
simple past tense of bear1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To Boring
Collins
World English Dictionary
boring1 (ˈbɔːrɪŋ)
 
—n
1.  a.  the act or process of making or enlarging a hole
 b.  the hole made in this way
2.  (often plural) a fragment, particle, chip, etc, produced during boring

boring2 (ˈbɔːrɪŋ)
 
—adj
dull; repetitious; uninteresting
 
boringly2
 
—adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

boring
mid-15c., "action of piercing," from bore (v.). From 1853 in reference to animals that bore; 1840 in the sense "wearying, causing ennui."
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bore
p.t. of bear (v.).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
bore   (bôr)  Pronunciation Key 

  1. In fluid mechanics, a jump in the level of moving water, generally propagating in the opposite direction to the current. Strong ocean tides can cause bores to propagate up rivers.

    1. The white, shallow portion of a wave after it breaks. The bore carries ocean water onto the beach.

    2. A tidal wave caused by the surge of a flood tide upstream in a narrowing estuary or by colliding tidal currents.


The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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