Word origins - 2ed. J. Ayto. 2005.
Sullen — Sul len, a. [OE. solein, solain, lonely, sullen; through Old French fr. (assumed) LL. solanus solitary, fr. L. solus alone. See {Sole}, a.] 1. Lonely; solitary; desolate. [Obs.] Wyclif (Job iii. 14). [1913 Webster] 2. Gloomy; dismal; foreboding.… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Sullen — may refer to:* Sullens Swiss municipalityMusic* A Sullen Sky song * Sullen band * Sullen Girl song * Sullen Soul song * Slumber of Sullen Eyes album/song * The Sullen Sulcus album … Wikipedia
sullen — sullen, *glum, morose, surly, sulky, crabbed, saturnine, dour, gloomy can mean governed by or showing, especially in one s aspect, a forbidding or disagreeable mood or disposition. One is sullen who is, often by disposition, gloomy, silent, and… … New Dictionary of Synonyms
Sullen — Sul len, n. 1. One who is solitary, or lives alone; a hermit. [Obs.] Piers Plowman. [1913 Webster] 2. pl. Sullen feelings or manners; sulks; moroseness; as, to have the sullens. [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Sullen — Sul len, v. t. To make sullen or sluggish. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] Sullens the whole body with . . . laziness. Feltham. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
sullen — [sul′ən] adj. [ME solein, alone, solitary < VL * solanus, alone < L solus, alone, SOLE2] 1. showing resentment and ill humor by morose, unsociable withdrawal 2. gloomy; dismal; sad; depressing 3. somber; dull [sullen colors] 4. slow moving; … English World dictionary
sullen — index despondent, resentful, restive Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
sullen — 1570s, alteration of M.E. soleyn unique, singular, from Anglo Fr. *solein, formed on the pattern of O.Fr. soltain, from O.Fr. soul single (see SOLE (Cf. sole) (2)). The sense shift in M.E. from solitary to morose occurred late 14c … Etymology dictionary
sullen — [adj] brooding, upset bad tempered, cheerless, churlish, crabbed*, crabby*, cross, cynical, dismal, dour, dull, fretful, frowning, gloomy, glowering, glum, gruff, grumpy*, heavy, hostile, ill humored, inert, irritable, malevolent, malicious,… … New thesaurus
sullen — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ bad tempered and sulky. DERIVATIVES sullenly adverb sullenness noun. ORIGIN originally in the senses «averse to company» and «unusual»: from Old French sulein, from sol sole … English terms dictionary
sullen — adjective Etymology: Middle English solein solitary, from Anglo French sulein, solain, perhaps from sol, soul single, sole + ain after Old French soltain solitary, private, from Late Latin solitaneus, ultimately from Latin solus alone Date: 14th… … New Collegiate Dictionary
