/ dɑːn; NAmE dɑːrn/ verb , noun , adjective , adverb
■ verb
to repair a hole in a piece of clothing by sewing stitches across the hole :
[ vn ]
to darn socks
[also v ]
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IDIOMS
- darn it!
- I'll be darned!
■ noun
a place on a piece of clothing that has been repaired by darning
■ adjective
(also darned ) ( informal ) used as a mild swear word, to emphasize sth :
Why don't you switch the darn thing off and listen to me!
■ adverb
(also darned ) ( informal ) used as a mild swear word, instead of saying damn , to mean 'extremely' or 'very' :
You had a darn good try.
It's darn cold tonight.
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WORD ORIGIN
noun and verb early 17th cent.: perhaps from dialect dern to hide , which is from Old English diernan , of West Germanic origin; compare with Middle Dutch dernen stop holes in (a dyke).