Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To dim the vision of, especially to blind with intense light.
  • intransitive verb To amaze, overwhelm, or bewilder with spectacular display.
  • intransitive verb To become blinded.
  • intransitive verb To inspire admiration or wonder.
  • noun The act of dazzling or the state of being dazzled.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To overpower with light; hinder distinct vision of by intense light; dim, as the sight, by excess of light.
  • Figuratively, to overpower or confound by splendor or brilliancy, or with show or display of any kind.
  • To be stupefied; be mentally confused.
  • To be overpowered by light; become unsteady or waver, as the sight.
  • To be overpoweringly or blindingly bright.
  • Figuratively, to excite admiration by brilliancy or showy qualities which overbear criticism.
  • noun Brightness; splendor; excess of light.
  • noun Meretricious display; brilliancy.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A light of dazzling brilliancy.
  • intransitive verb To be overpoweringly or intensely bright; to excite admiration by brilliancy.
  • intransitive verb To be overpowered by light; to be confused by excess of brightness.
  • transitive verb To overpower with light; to confuse the sight of by brilliance of light.
  • transitive verb To bewilder or surprise with brilliancy or display of any kind.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb transitive To confuse the sight of by means of excessive brightness.
  • verb transitive, figuratively To render incapable of thinking clearly; to overwhelm with showiness or brilliance.
  • noun A light of dazzling brilliancy.
  • noun uncommon A herd of zebra.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb to cause someone to lose clear vision, especially from intense light
  • verb amaze or bewilder, as with brilliant wit or intellect or skill
  • noun brightness enough to blind partially and temporarily

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[ Frequentative of daze.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Frequentative of daze.

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Examples

  • Going on their air on a regular basis and lending your name and reputation to their ideological razzle-dazzle is like agreeing to be the regular kulak guest columnist at Pravda in 1929.

    Juan Williams, axed

  • As to American susceptibility to Rovian razzle-dazzle, that is a matter of bleak historical record and I shouldn't have to strain myself to prove anything.

    McCain: Bailout Deal Won't Pass

  • Shouting, making his swung sword dazzle in light, Diego de Arana raced down path, and Diego Minas and Beltran the cook and Juan Lepe with him.

    1492,

  • Shouting, making his swung sword dazzle in light, Diego de Arana raced down path, and Diego Minas and Beltran the cook and Juan Lepe with him.

    1492

  • The shoulders and sleeves are white and made of a shiny tightly woven nylon called dazzle mesh.

    Epinions Recent Content for Home

  • Wadsworth's art incorporated docked steamships painted in what was termed dazzle camouflage-sharp, geometric contrasts meant to baffle enemy range finding during World

    artforum.com

  • Completing the dazzle is the crown which spots 12 0. 4carat baguette-cut diamonds.

    Luxurylaunches.com

  • The shoulders and sleeves are white and made of a shiny tightly woven nylon called dazzle mesh.

    Epinions Recent Content for Home

  • The Chinese successfully tested an antisatellite missile in 2007 and have reportedly used lasers to "dazzle" (or temporarily blind) U.S. satellites.

    China's 'Finlandization' Strategy in the Pacific

  • Maybe he is meant to be a kind of dazzle camouflage , a collection of garish traits that prevent you from seeing the person.

    The Electric Mayhem: Notes on Inherent Vice by Thomas Pynchon

Comments

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  • I read somewhere that a group of zebras is a dazzle. I think I'll continue calling them a herd.

    April 19, 2010

  • *steals frogapplause's herd of zebras and turns then into a dazzling set of curtains, lounge suite and cocktail jacket*

    April 19, 2010

  • The vegan butcher strikes again!

    April 19, 2010

  • Live zebras make for the most dazzling cut of cocktail jackets, frogger.

    April 20, 2010

  • Also a style of camouflage. See dazzle ship.

    March 23, 2016