DE'AFNESS, noun, dee'fness. 1. Incapacity of perceiving sounds; the state of the organs which prevents the impressions which constitute hearing; as the deafness of the ears: hence, applied to persons, want of the sense of hearing. 2. Unwillingness to hear and regard; voluntary rejection of what is addressed to the ear and to the understanding.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI