not able to hear anything, or not able to hear very well. Many deaf people wear a hearing aid to help them hear. Deaf people often use their hands to communicate in sign language, and many can lip-read what other people are saying
totally/partially deaf:
She’s been totally deaf since birth.
profoundly deaf (=completely deaf):
He has specialisttraining in working with profoundly deaf students.
deaf in:
I’m a little deaf in one ear.
Synonyms and related words
The ear and hearing
anvil
(as) deaf as a post
audio-
phrases
(as) deaf as a post
deaf to something
fall on deaf ears
turn a deaf ear (to)
derived word
deafness
noun
Synonyms and related words
The ear and hearing
anvil
(as) deaf as a post
audio-
deaf
adjective
US /def/
Other entries for this word
deaf mutenoun
tone deafadjective
deaf-and-dumbadjective
deaf to somethingphrase
fall on deaf earsphrase
(as) deaf as a postphrase
turn a deaf ear (to)phrase
deaf at hearing-impaired
Word Forms
adjective
deaf
comparative
deafer
superlative
deafest
DEFINITIONS1
1
not able to hear anything, or not able to hear very well. Many deaf people wear a hearing aid to help them hear. Deaf people often use their hands to communicate in sign language, and many can lip-read what other people are saying