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Glite Dictionary
to bedim

to bedim

9.9
To make something, like light and memory, less bright or clear
  • verb
  • /bɪˈdɪm/
translation icon : oscurecer
  • And tears bedim your loving eyes

Examples

  • The thick fog began to bedim the view of the mountains.

  • The artist used dark colors to bedim the background in her painting.

  • As dusk fell, the light from the streetlamps bedimmed the once bright park.

Synonyms

to blind
vsto bedim
102 6.8

To make people not notice something by being more obvious

is broader and includes direct reduction of light or clarity itself
to obscure
vsto bedim
86 7.0

Make something hard to see or understand

often emphasizes reducing light or brightness as well as concealing
to darken
vsto bedim
63 3.3

Make or become less bright, for example a room

focuses more on loss of clarity or sharpness rather than only darkness
to blur
vsto bedim
61 3.6

To make something hard to see or understand

is about overall loss of light or clearness, not only edges
to cloud
vsto bedim
56 4.4

To make something less clear or bright by covering it

leans more on lowering visibility through dimming rather than mere covering
to overshadow
vsto bedim
15 5.4

To make something darker by blocking light

is more general, covering both shadowing and non-shadow forms of dimming
to dim
vsto bedim
12 2.4

To become less bright or make a light weaker

is broader, covering both literal dimming and figurative loss of clarity
to blot out
vsto bedim
8 5.4

Hide something so you cannot see it or remember it

is less extreme, allowing partial dimming or weakening of visibility
to fog
vsto bedim
7 5.2

To make something hard to see or understand

also covers simple darkening or loss of clarity beyond hazy conditions
to murk
vsto bedim
1 9.5

To make something dark or hard to see

focuses more on reducing brightness and general clarity in many contexts
to deaden
vsto bedim
1 6.1

To make an outline, sound, or feeling less clear

leans more on reducing light or visual clarity rather than dulling strength
to becloud
vsto bedim
1 8.9

To make something less clear and hard to see, often by smoke, fog or strong feelings

stresses general reduction in light or clarity rather than only clouding
to becloud the view
vsto bedim
8.7

Make the view hard to see because of fog or smoke

is wider, including both hiding and making things darker or unclear
to befog
vsto bedim
8.8

To make something hard to see or understand

is broader and includes lowering brightness as well as haziness
to overcloud
vsto bedim
8.4

To make something less clear and hard to understand

is more general, including literal loss of brightness as well
to blear
vsto bedim
9.9

To make the edges of things look dim or blurred

is broader, applying to both visual blurring and figurative unclearing
to dislimn
vsto bedim
  • Archaic
9.9

To make the outline or image faint and hard to see

is more general, covering overall darkening and loss of clarity
to benight
vsto bedim
  • Literature
9.9

To make a place dark or become dark as night falls

is broader and includes non temporal or figurative loss of clarity

Antonyms

to clarify
248 3.3

To make something clear so others can understand it

to brighten
27 2.7

To make a place or thing look more cheerful by adding color

How Dim

to blacken
19 3.4
to darken
63 3.3
to bedim
9.9
to obscure
86 7.0
to blur
61 3.6

Surface Forms

bedim infinitive
bedimmed past
bedimmed past participle
bedimming present participle
bedims third person singular

Morphology

bedim = dim + be (transparent) = be + dim + be

The verb is a straightforward productive formation from the adjective 'dim' with the productive prefix 'be-', meaning 'make X'.

Etymology

Bedim comes from the prefix be- ('to make') plus the word dim ('not bright'). So to bedim something is to 'make' it dim — to make it darker or less clear, either in light or in meaning.