Hebete

/hɛˈbeɪt/ adjective

Definition

Dull, stupid, or mentally sluggish; lacking sharpness or alertness.

Etymology

Directly from Latin hebēs meaning dull or blunt. This is an older form that entered English before the verb hebetate was created, representing the root adjective that other words grew from.

Kelly Says

This adjective is even rarer than hebetate—it's like finding a fossil word from when English scholars were first importing Latin medical terminology into the language.

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