I. ˈdāz transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English dasen, from Old Norse dasa (as in dasask to become exhausted); akin to Dutch dazen to hesitate, Middle High German dæsic quiet, stupid, Old Norse dāsi lazy person, and probably to Old English demm injury, loss, Latin fames hunger
1. : to stupefy especially by a blow : make numb : stun
he swung at him, dazed him, and drove him along the bar — Morley Callaghan
2. : to confuse or dazzle with light
the whiteness of the walls dazes me
Synonyms:
daze , stun , bemuse , stupefy , torpify , benumb , paralyze , and petrify can apply, in common, to a forcefully disturbing experience or influence and mean, in common, to dull or deaden the powers of the mind. daze usually implies a bewilderment or confusion from a blow, a shock, a sudden excess of light, and so on
too stunned and dazed by the suddenness with which events had happened during the last twenty-four hours to be able to realize his position — Samuel Butler †1902
a grief- dazed mother
dazed by the lantern glare — Rudyard Kipling
stun usually suggests the deprivation of powers of thought, or a usually momentary loss of consciousness, from a heavy blow or something conceived of as resembling a heavy blow
I was knocked headlong across the floor against the oven handle and stunned. I was insensible for a long time — H.G.Wells
the swing doors burst open with a crash. There was an instant's stunned silence — Nevil Shute
a world stunned and only just beginning to awaken from the stupefying effect of war — Aneurin Bevan
stunned by a sudden declaration of love
bemuse implies an addling or muddling of the mind, typically through intoxication
an alcohol- bemused tramp
the noise of London bemused her more than the noise of the sea — Ngaio Marsh
so bemused by theories of meaning that we have lost sight of what men do in fact mean — Iredell Jenkins
stupefy heightens the implication of stupor or stupidity, implying not so much a blow or shock as some cause like an injury, intoxication, or long-continued grief or anxiety
the ship … reeled, trembled, and stopped her way, as if [the heavy sea] had stupefied her — Frederick Marryat
half stupefied with sleep and fatigue — Elizabeth Goudge
a dull misery stupefied her thoughts — Ellen Glasgow
torpify is close to stupefy but stresses torpor of body resulting in torpor of mind and usually implying a physical cause
a drug that torpifies the rational faculties
benumb applies usually to the effect of cold in deadening the sensations or immobilizing muscle action; in extension, it strongly suggests this effect
it is so cold, so dark, my senses are so benumbed — Charles Dickens
her senses remained benumbed by toil — Ellen Glasgow
Charlotte's cold resolution benumbed her courage, and she could find no immediate reply — Edith Wharton
paralyze is often used to imply an inability to act or function that results from some dire event
why does danger paralyze the will and intelligence of some men — Bernard De Voto
the grim panic which paralyzed business and agriculture in the West — R.A.Billington
petrify emphasizes an immediate strong, figuratively paralyzing effect, usually of fear, suggesting complete inability to move, think, or speak, and lending itself easily to conversational hyperbole
the petrifying effect of fear — E.A.Armstrong
a tiger, serenely gazing at me barely twenty yards away. I was petrified at first — Suresh Vaidya
I was petrified to think my wallet had been lost
II. noun
( -s )
1. : the state of being dazed
went about in a daze
2. : mica or any glittering stone