yawnn.
/jɔːn/, U.S. /jɔn/, /jɑn/ 1. Something that yawns; a gaping opening or entrance; esp. a chasm, abyss.
ΘΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > an opening or aperture > [noun] > wide or gaping
chaos?a1425
yawn1602
chasm1627
chasment1655
1602 J. Marston Antonios Reuenge iii. iii. sig. F2v Now gapes the graues, and through their yawnes let loose Imprison'd spirits to reuisit earth.
1755 T. Amory Mem. Ladies 317 The billows that were all in wild uproar, and then came down into the dreadful yawn.
1820 L. Hunt Indicator 8 Mar. 170 Trust not the tempting yawn of stable-yard or gateway.
1820 J. Keats Hyperion: a Fragm. i, in Lamia & Other Poems 152 Spaces of fire, and all the yawn of hell.
1894 W. C. Russell in Idler Sept. 134 The stubborn, wonderful old piece of timber-frame was picked out of the yawn of the hatch in splinters.
2. The or an act of yawning:
a. Gaping or opening wide.
ΘΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > [noun] > action or process of opening > gaping open or opening wide
gapingc1374
chasm1596
yawn1697
yawning1820
dehiscence1828
1697 W. Congreve Mourning Bride ii. i. 17 Sure, 'tis the Friendly Yawn of Death for me.
1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 248 And sometimes with a mighty Yawn, 'tis said, Opens a dismal Passage to the Dead.
b. Involuntary opening of the mouth, as from drowsiness.
ΘΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > [noun] > action of yawning
yawningc725
oscitation1547
oscitance1636
yawn1707
oscitancy1717
1707 E. Ward Wooden World Dissected 96 After..a few hearty Yawns, he crawls up upon Deck.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 320. ⁋5 Our Salutation at Entrance is a Yawn and a Stretch.
1742 A. Pope New Dunciad 335 She..heard thy everlasting yawn confess The pains and penalties of Idleness.
1875 Ld. Tennyson Queen Mary i. iii. 18 A life of nods and yawns.
c. transferred and in transferred contexts, denoting something that induces boredom; a tedious activity. colloquial.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [noun] > tedious or dull thing or activity
weariness1560
insipid1699
prose1743
bore1778
insipidity1822
ennui1849
yawn1889
palaver1920
bind1930
binder1930
corn1936
yawner1942
ho-hum1963
vicarage tea party1973
1889 E. Dowson Let. 3 Feb. (1967) 32 My dear Moore. Here goes for my accustomed Sunday yawn to you! Thanks for your note.
1974 D. Gray Dead Give Away ii. 24 To you it may be one big yawn, or the laugh of a life-time... But to me it's important.
1978 G. A. Sheehan Running & Being viii. 102 For them the Super Bowl is three hours of yawns.
1979 Broadcast 4 June 8/3 7 June will be a major event for psephologists..if..a yawn a minute for British voters.
1984 Times 3 Oct. 13/1 So much proscription may sound like a recipe for a great gastronomic yawn.
Derivatives
ˈyawnful adj.
ΘΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective] > wearisome or tedious
dreicha1300
alangec1330
joylessa1400
tedious1412
wearifulc1454
weary1465
laboriousa1475
tiresome?a1513
irksome1513
wearisome1530
woodena1566
irkful1570
flat1573
leaden1593
barren1600
soaked1600
unlively1608
dulla1616
irking1629
drearisome1633
drear1645
plumbous1651
fatigable1656
dreary1667
uncurious1685
unenlivened1692
blank1726
disinteresting1737
stupid1748
stagnant1749
trist?1756
vegetable1757
borish1766
uninteresting1769
unenlivening1774
oorie1787
wearying1796
subjectless1803
yawny1805
wearing1811
stuffy1813
sloomy1820
tediousome1823
arid1827
lacklustrous1834
boring1839
featureless1839
slow1840
sodden1853
ennuying1858
dusty1860
cabbagy1861
old1864
mouldy1876
yawnful1878
drab1880
dehydrated1884
interestless1886
jay1889
boresome1895
stodgy1895
stuffy1895
yawnsome1900
sludgy1901
draggy1922
blah1937
nowhere1940
drack1945
stupefactive1970
schleppy1978
wack1986
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > [adjective] > yawning or inclined to yawn
yawning1575
yawny1805
gapy1830
yawnish1855
yawnful1878
yawnsome1900
1878 J. Thomson Plenipotent Key 26 His mouth and arms stretched yawnful.
1898 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Apr. 498/1 Fifty dull, stiff-jointed, yawnful years.
ˈyawnfully adv. Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adverb] > in wearisome or tedious manner
irksomely1549
tediously1557
leaden-like1574
drearily1579
dully1600
Welshly1629
unlively1641
woodenly1653
stupidly1723
uninterestingly1793
soporifically1807
sloomy1820
wearyingly1829
boringly1840
tiresomely1847
aridly1883
drably1891
stuffily1894
stodgily1904
yawnsomely1908
yawnfully1914
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > [adverb] > yawning
yawningly1630
yawnfully1914
1914 W. De Morgan When Ghost meets Ghost i. xviii. 691 ‘On my way to Poynders,’ said the Countess yawnfully.
ˈyawnish adj. Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective]
irk1303
tedious1430
irksome1435
irked1513
ennuyé1757
seccatored1763
yawny1805
bored1823
used up1839
yawnish1855
fed up1900
fed to the (back) teeth1921
browned off1938
brassed1941
cheesed1941
chocker1942
pissy1962
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > [adjective] > yawning or inclined to yawn
yawning1575
yawny1805
gapy1830
yawnish1855
yawnful1878
yawnsome1900
1855 A. Manning Old Chelsea Bun-house ix. 156 I awoke..chilly and yawnish.
ˈyawnless adj. Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > [adjective] > type of sleep > deep or unbroken
fastOE
stronga1398
sada1425
deep1547
sound1548
unstarting1748
wakeless1824
profound1833
unawakening1846
unawaking1863
yawnless1881
1881 J. M. Brown Student Life 4 A yawnless languor.
ˈyawnsome adj. Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective] > wearisome or tedious
dreicha1300
alangec1330
joylessa1400
tedious1412
wearifulc1454
weary1465
laboriousa1475
tiresome?a1513
irksome1513
wearisome1530
woodena1566
irkful1570
flat1573
leaden1593
barren1600
soaked1600
unlively1608
dulla1616
irking1629
drearisome1633
drear1645
plumbous1651
fatigable1656
dreary1667
uncurious1685
unenlivened1692
blank1726
disinteresting1737
stupid1748
stagnant1749
trist?1756
vegetable1757
borish1766
uninteresting1769
unenlivening1774
oorie1787
wearying1796
subjectless1803
yawny1805
wearing1811
stuffy1813
sloomy1820
tediousome1823
arid1827
lacklustrous1834
boring1839
featureless1839
slow1840
sodden1853
ennuying1858
dusty1860
cabbagy1861
old1864
mouldy1876
yawnful1878
drab1880
dehydrated1884
interestless1886
jay1889
boresome1895
stodgy1895
stuffy1895
yawnsome1900
sludgy1901
draggy1922
blah1937
nowhere1940
drack1945
stupefactive1970
schleppy1978
wack1986
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > [adjective] > yawning or inclined to yawn
yawning1575
yawny1805
gapy1830
yawnish1855
yawnful1878
yawnsome1900
1900 Yorks. Post 28 July 6/6 A jaded and yawnsome and even jaundiced assemblage.
ˈyawnsomely adv. Apparently an isolated use.
ΘΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adverb] > in wearisome or tedious manner
irksomely1549
tediously1557
leaden-like1574
drearily1579
dully1600
Welshly1629
unlively1641
woodenly1653
stupidly1723
uninterestingly1793
soporifically1807
sloomy1820
wearyingly1829
boringly1840
tiresomely1847
aridly1883
drably1891
stuffily1894
stodgily1904
yawnsomely1908
yawnfully1914
1908 Standard 18 Feb. 7 A..yawnsomely dull debate.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
yawnv.
/jɔːn/, U.S. /jɔn/, /jɑn/ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > mouth > [verb (intransitive)] > open
yawnc725
ganec1000
gapec1220
galp1377
inhiate1542
gawne1563
gawp1728
yawp1836
α.
β. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) 2 Macc. vi. 18 Eleasarus..ȝanynge [v.r. ȝonyng] with open mouth, was compellid for to ete swynys flesh.1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomew de Glanville De Proprietatibus Rerum xii. x. (Tollem. MS.) The rauen biholdeþ þe mouþe of hire briddes, whan þey ȝaneþ.1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomew de Glanville De Proprietatibus Rerum xvi. vi. (Tollem. MS.) [Auripigmentum] helpeþ tisik..if þey ȝaneþ þeron and takeþ þe smoke þerof.a1400 Coer de L. 276 Upon hys crest a raven stode, That yaned as he wer wode.1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde iii. iv. f. 106 Multitudes of Crocodiles lyinge in the sande, and yanyng to take the heate of the soonne.γ. 1568 T. Hacket tr. A. Thevet New Found Worlde xx. 32 This fish is named Marsouin,..he hath..on the heade a certayne cundite or opening, by the which he yawnneth or purgeth, euen as the Whale [Fr. par lequel il respire ainsi que la balene].1603 P. Holland tr. Plutarch Morals 970 The crocodiles..yawne and offer there teeth unto them to be picked and clensed with there hands.c725 Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) B 24 Battat, geonath.
c725 Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) G 4 Garrit, gionat.
c1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 50 Bewyl twy dæl on wætre geot on bollan & geona ymb.
c1000 Ags. Ps. (1835) xxi. 11 [xxii. 13] Hi todydon heora muð ongean me, swa swa leo, þonne he geonað.
a1100 Aldhelm Glosses i. 2409 in A. S. Napier Old Eng. Glosses (1900) 65 Hiulco, i. aperto, ieoniendum. rostro, i. ore, bile.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 178 Ȝef þu sech..ȝeonen up on þe þe deofel of helle.
a1250 Owl & Nightingale 292 Þat me ne chide wit þe gidie Ne wit þan ofne me ne ȝonie.
a1290 S. Eustace 156 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 214 A wilde lioun..kipt his ȝonge sone anon, On him he ȝenede wide.
13.. K. Alis. (Linc. Inn MS.) 485 Him þouȝte a goshauk wiþ gret flyȝt Setliþ on his herberyng And ȝeniþ [Laud MS. ȝyneþ] and sprad abrod his wyngyn.
a1400 Sir Beues (A.) 2763 Ȝenande & gapande on him so, Ase he wolde him swolwe þo.
c1400 Arth. & Merl. 1583 (Linc. Inn MS.) His mouþ and þrote ȝonede wide.
14.. Arth. & Merl. (Douce) 1117 And wiþ his mouþ he ȝenede wyde.
c1450 Mirk's Festial 200 Then anon come..a gret horryble dragon and ȝeonet [v.r. ȝanyng] on her.
2. To lie, stand, or be wide open, as a chasm, abyss, or the like; to have or form a wide opening, gap, or chasm.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > become open [verb (intransitive)] > be or become wide open
yawnc890
gapec1480
galp1546
yaw1596
chawn1598
yawn1600
chaum1610
dehisce1657
α.
β. 1600 W. Shakespeare Henry V iv. vi. 14 The gashes That bloodily did yane vpon his face.γ. 1744 E. Young Complaint: Night the Sixth 38 Wide yawns the Gap, Connexion is no more.1795 W. Cowper Needless Alarm 14 And where the land slopes to its wat'ry bourn, Wide yawns a gulph beside a ragged thorn.1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake ii. 86 As sudden ruin yawned around.1829 W. Scott Anne of Geierstein III. x. 285 A private staircase which yawned in the floor to admit their descent.1865 P. H. Gosse Land & Sea (1874) 241 The beach yawning some thirty feet below.1877 A. B. Edwards Thousand Miles up Nile xxi. 648 Here yawns a great pit half full of débris.1890 W. C. Russell Ocean Trag. ii It was the Isle of Wight, and the shore on either hand went yawning to it till it looked a day's sail away.figurative.1580 E. Spenser Let. in G. Harvey Wks. (1884) I. 35 The onely, or chiefest hardnesse,..is in the Accente: whyche sometime gapeth, and as it were yawneth ilfauouredly.c890 Wærferth tr. Gregory's Dial. 52 Beneoðan swiðe deop niwolnys ginode [v.r. geonode].
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 226 Bineoðen us ȝeoninde þe wide þrote of helle.
c1450 Mirk's Festial 4 Vndyr hym helle ȝeonyng, and galpyng, and spyttyng fyre.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > wish or inclination > desire > longing or yearning > long or yearn for [verb (transitive)]
yearneOE
yearnOE
copena1225
longc1225
to yawn after or fora1250
yerec1275
to stand to ——a1400
hungerc1450
ache1622
desiderate1646
sigh1650
tire1801
lonesome for1905
a1250 Owl & Nightingale 1403 Þe gost..ȝeoneþ after more & more An lutel rehþ of milce & ore.
1576 A. Fleming tr. Hippocrates in Panoplie Epist. 283 After he hath caught that within his clawes, after which he was euer yawning.
1593 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie Pref. 21 The chiefest thing which lay reformers yawne for is, that the Cleargie may..be Apostolicall.
4.
a. To make involuntarily a prolonged inspiration with the mouth wide open and the lower jaw much depressed, as from drowsiness or fatigue.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > be or become drowsy [verb (intransitive)] > yawn
raxOE
gapec1440
yawn1450
raxle?c1475
ream?a1500
gant1513
oscitate1623
α.
β. c1450 How Good Wijf (Lamb. 853) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 38 Lauȝe þou not to loude, ne ȝane þou not to wide.a1529 J. Skelton Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng in Certayne Bks. (?1545) 331 She began to yane and gaspy.1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Luke viii. 78 [He] wil stande gapyng & yanyng whan he should geue eare as though he wer more then half in slepe.1557 R. Edgeworth Serm. very Fruitfull 261 He yaned seuen tymes, and opened his eyes, reuiued, and liued.1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Biiv/1 To Gane, yane, oscitare.γ. 1549 M. Coverdale et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. II. 1 Thess. v. f. vii Those that yawne and slumbre in naughtinesse, are occupied in darknesse of the soule.1622 T. Gataker Spirituall Watch (ed. 2) 67 The very sight of those that yawne is wont to set others also on yawning.1721 Visct. Bolingbroke Let. 12 Sept. in J. Swift Lett. (1766) II. 274 You shall be forced to read it out, though you yawn from the first to the last page.1835 Mirror of Parl. (2nd Sess., 12th Parl.) 1 818/1 Mr. O'Connell here yawned so loudly as to interrupt the Honourable Member.1852 W. M. Thackeray Henry Esmond III. iii. 68 It must be owned that the audience yawned through the play; and that it perished on the third night.1880 ‘Ouida’ Moths I. ii. 39 I thought I should have yawned till I broke my neck.1450–80 tr. Secr. Secr. xxxiv. 23 Suche a man yeneth often, and hath sumtime disese in his eyen.
1547 A. Borde Breuiary of Helthe i. f. lxiiii The pacient wylbe colde, and oft yeane or gape, yf this feuer be putrified.
1598 Bp. J. Hall Virgidemiarum: 3 Last Bks. vi. ii. 101 Had he heard the Female Fathers grone, Yeaning in mids of her procession.
b. To open the mouth wide from surprise or the like; to gape. Obsolete or dialect.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > mouth > [verb (intransitive)] > open > from surprise
yawna1616
a1616 W. Shakespeare Othello (1622) v. ii. 110 Me thinks it should be now a huge Ecclips Of Sunne and Moone, and that the affrighted Globe, Should yawne at alteration.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Coriolanus (1623) iii. ii. 10 To shew bare heads In Congregations, to yawne, be still, and wonder [etc.] . View more context for this quotation
1887 F. T. Havergal Herefordshire Words 38/1 Yarning, = staring. ‘Stand yarning there’. E.
c. transitive. To say or utter with a yawn or with wide-open mouth. Also with cognate object.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > manner of speaking > say in a particular manner [verb (transitive)] > say in other sort of manner
rifta1400
abraida1500
rumblec1520
mince1549
roll1561
slaver1599
troll1631
yawn1718
buzz1763
gurgle1805
namby-pamby1812
sibilate1837
ripple1890
nicker1929
1718 N. Rowe tr. Lucan Pharsalia i. 394 Scorning the wound he [sc. the lion] yawns a dreadful roar.
1828 T. B. Macaulay Polit. Georgics in Poems 30 Let all in bulky majesty appear, Roll the dull eye, and yawn th'unmeaning cheer.
1854 C. Dickens Hard Times iii. ii. 271 ‘It wouldn't be bad,’ he yawned at one time, ‘to give the waiter five shillings, and throw him.’
1897 M. Kingsley Trav. W. Afr. 243 One immense fellow..yawns a yawn a yard wide.
d. To bring into some position or condition by, or to the accompaniment of, yawning; also occasionally, to pass through in a lethargic manner.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > inaction > disinclination to act or listlessness > pass (time) listlessly or lethargically [verb (transitive)]
languisha1616
yawn1742
daidle1808
moon1876
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > make drowsy [verb (transitive)] > bring into specific condition by yawning
yawn1742
the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > sleep > drowsiness > make drowsy [verb (transitive)] > pass away (time) drowsily > in yawning
yawn1742
to gape away1883
1742 E. Young Complaint: Night the Third 23 For what live ever Here?..To surfeit on the Same, And yawn our Joys?
1745 E. Young Complaint: Night the Eighth 31 No Man e'er found a happy Life by Chance, Or yawn'd it into Being, with a Wish.
1817 Lady Morgan France (1818) I. ii. 247 The Dalai lamas of haut ton, who yawn away their existence in the assemblies of London.
1880 Daily News 29 Oct. 6/2 He literally yawned us out of the room.
a1903 ‘H. S. Merriman’ Last Hope (1904) i He..politely yawned that reminiscent fish-curer into silence.
5. intransitive. To open wide as a mouth; to form a chasm; to gape, part asunder.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > become open [verb (intransitive)] > be or become wide open
yawnc890
gapec1480
galp1546
yaw1596
chawn1598
yawn1600
chaum1610
dehisce1657
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing v. iii. 19 Graues yawne and yeeld your dead. View more context for this quotation
a1660 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1645 (1955) II. 346 The sea retiring neere 200 paces, and yawning on the sudaine, it continued to vomite forth..flames, & firy stones.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vi. 875 Hell at last Yawning receavd them whole, and on them clos'd. View more context for this quotation
1713 E. Young Poem on Last Day i. 6 The Vallies [shall] yawn, the troubled Ocean roar.
1820 W. Scott Monastery I. xi. 329 If the earth yawned and gave up a demon.
1848 C. Dickens Dombey & Son lvi. 557 When the silent tomb shall yawn, Captain Gills, I shall be ready for burial; not before.
1852 Ld. Tennyson Ode Wellington 269 The black earth yawns: the mortal disappears; Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
6. transitive. To cause to open wide.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > open [verb (transitive)] > open wide
yawn1382
widen1567
1382 J. Wyclif Psalms xxxiv. [xxxv.] 21 Thei ȝeneden [v.r. maden large, L. dilataverunt] their mouth upon me.
a1657 G. Daniel Idyllia in Poems (1878) IV. ii. 31 The monstrous Whale (wch Roles The Ocean, wth his Breath, and Yawnes the Brine As its Recesse).
1798 R. Southey Grandmother's Tale 85 She stood beside the murderer's bed, and yawn'd Her ghastly wound.
7. To make, produce, or afford by opening wide.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > open [verb (transitive)] > open wide > make or afford by
yawn1606
1606 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. (new ed.) ii. iii. 96 The groaning Earth..Tearing her Rocks, Vntill she Yawne a way To let it out, and to let in the Day.
1818 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Canto IV lxiii. 34 None felt stern Nature..yawning forth a grave for those who lay Upon their bucklers for a winding sheet.
1821 Ld. Byron Sardanapalus ii. i. 68 The realm itself, in all its wide extension, Yawns dungeons at each step for thee and me.
1907 Smart Set Mar. 41/2 The prison doors were yawning a welcome for the runaways.
Compounds
yawn-mouthed adj. yawning, gaping.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > [adjective] > wide open or gaping
yawningc893
wideOE
wide open?c1225
gap-wide1582
gaping1594
mouthed1609
patulous1616
wide-opened1635
dehiscent1649
discontinuous1667
patulent1712
hiant1800
yawn-mouthed1861
1861 C. Rossetti Prince's Progress xxix Out it [sc. a light] flashed from a yawn-mouthed cave, Like a red-hot eye from a grave.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1921; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1602
v.c725