Definition of yawn in English:

yawn

Translate yawn into Spanish

intransitive verb

[no object]

1Involuntarily open one's mouth wide and inhale deeply due to tiredness or boredom.
- ‘he began yawning and looking at his watch’
gaping, wide open, wide, cavernous, deep
2(of an opening or space) be very large and wide.
‘she started inching back from the abyss that yawned before her’
- ‘the whole empty day yawned before me’
gaping, wide open, wide, cavernous, deep

Pronunciation

yawn

/y?n/ /j?n/

/y?n/ /jɑn/

noun

1A reflex act of opening one's mouth wide and inhaling deeply due to tiredness or boredom.
‘he stretches and stifles a yawn’
- ‘Hugh Bradley was in the pool recently and said the two boys had yawns as wide as a hippopotamus' mouth.’
- ‘I tried not to show my boredom, but my yawns were coming quicker and quicker.’
- ‘And, since the good jokes don't come until the final third, a lot of yawns will have to be stifled.’
- ‘The skeletal mouth opened in a wide yawn, a centipede unknown to Anthony sleeping delicately on his tongue.’
- ‘But we are tired, and Mum mistakes our tiredness and stifled yawns for boredom.’
- ‘I spent this period of instruction trying to stifle yawns and resisting saying how old-hat this all seemed.’
- ‘Conner rose and stretched, his lupine muzzle gaping wide in a colossal yawn, the muscles rippling across his broad back.’
- ‘It's a sad day when 90 minutes of football is all about stifling the yawns.’
- ‘Evie said, she put her hand over her mouth to stifle a yawn.’
- ‘The transnational morality set can barely stifle their yawns.’
- ‘I don't even try to stifle my yawns while at the in-laws house.’
- ‘She is the most perfect creation in the world, the most innocent bundle of coos and yawns and mumbles, and my heart breaks every time she focuses on my face.’
- ‘At parties, it was the last thing I wanted to mention, since it was certain to bring yawns and glares of boredom from beer-holding peers.’
- ‘It's been a couple of weeks since I bought this one, and I'm sure mentioning it will have most people stifling yawns, but that's just tough!’
- ‘Sadie's heavy eyelids and swallow-the-earth yawns were entirely down to yet another interminable boredom barrage from Mr Brown.’
- ‘It's striking that the fecklessness of the United Nations and the treachery of the French draw so many yawns from establishment commentators and politicians.’
- ‘It was an era when politics had passion and party political conventions could be dramatic, world-changing events rather than media-manipulated yawns.’
- ‘Until now, I would have defied anyone to be able to make a documentary on the Somme that didn't reduce the audience to tears, but they managed not just to leave us with dry eyes, but to replace them with yawns.’
- ‘Rather than yawns of ‘we're bored’ the students engaged in lively debate with the Minister putting a myriad of questions to her ranging from the EU to the challenges of democracy.’
- ‘I like to watch late night TV (the only time good programs like 6 Feet Under, ER and arty documentaries are on) and judge my bedtime by the force of gravity and the frequency of my yawns.’
1. 1.1 informal in singular A thing that is considered boring or tedious.
  ‘the awards show was a four-hour yawn’
  ‘How are you going to get big voter turnout when everybody seems to think these elections are a big yawn?’
  ‘Because the dirty little secret is that most Americans still greet the MLS with a big yawn.’
  ‘It happened 15 years ago and it's been either a big yawn or a big laugh ever since.’
  ‘Put frankly, the whole thing was one big yawn which was mitigated only by the fact that it was a beautiful sunny day.’
  ‘Is Channel 4's new sleep deprivation game show a danger to health or just a big yawn?’
  ‘People will be looking for the sums and despite the eighty or so people last night, many think that the whole thing is a big yawn.’
  ‘Whatever it is I find it a relief to know you can be in your 40's and not turn into a boring middleaged yawn.’
  ‘It's not a big yawn or an exclusive affair, as most people might think.’
  ‘The horses' reaction to all this was on the order of a yawn - no big deal.’
  ‘Technologically speaking, the last 100 years of handgun development have been one big yawn.’
  ‘The Punakawan parts, which had amusing dialog and action, saved the performance from turning into a big yawn.’
  ‘I hope I'm wrong, but right now the whole issue is just one big yawn.’
  ‘The sheer Hip-ness of Evolution can feel like a bit of a yawn given the little risk of alienating such a loyal audience by pushing the envelope a touch.’
  ‘But the comedy is ghastly dull, the choreography fussy and boring - a yawn a minute, I thought sourly.’
  ‘Anyway, I ended up watching an amateur boxing match, big yawn.’
  ‘If you are part of the Big Five, XYZ is a just a big yawn.’
  ‘So pausing only to wonder at this weird form of celebrity inflation, in which the words rise and interest disappears with a popping yawn, here is a final thought.’
  ‘I heard from a relative of someone serving in Fallujah, who said that all the bases around there take mortar fire so frequently that it has become a big yawn for the troops.’
  ‘What Ellen MacArthur did is, to my mind, one big yawn.’
  ‘If like the rest of us you feel this year's Big Brother is a bit * yawn * compared to other years then join with us to keep the rebellious Dubliner in the house.’

Pronunciation

yawn

/y?n/ /j?n/

/y?n/ /jɑn/

Origin

Old English geonian, of Germanic origin, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin hiare and Greek khainein. Current noun senses date from the early 18th century.