Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin:

deaf

 adjective
     
deaf W3
1 physically unable to hear anything or unable to hear well [↪ hearing impaired]:
communication between deaf and hearing people
I think Mum's going a bit deaf.
She's deaf and dumb (=unable to hear or speak) and communicates using sign language.
Tom was born profoundly deaf (=completely deaf).
stone deaf/deaf as a post informal (=completely deaf)
➔ hard of hearing, tone-deaf
2

the deaf

[plural] people who are deaf:
a school for the deaf
3

be deaf to something

literary to be unwilling to hear or listen to something:
She was deaf to his pleas.
4

turn a deaf ear (to something)

to be unwilling to listen to what someone is saying or asking:
The factory owners turned a deaf ear to the demands of the workers.
5

fall on deaf ears

if advice or a warning falls on deaf ears, everyone ignores it
—deafness noun [uncountable]
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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