humdrum
Preserved but no longer current.
Monotonous, tedious, tiresome, boring; "a society of gentlemen who used to meet near the Charter House, and at the King’s Head, St. John’s Street, Clerkenwell. They were characterized by less mystery and more pleasantry than the Freemasons."—Bacchus and Venus, 1737. In the West the term applies to a low cart.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “humdrum” mean?
Monotonous, tedious, tiresome, boring; "a society of gentlemen who used to meet near the Charter House, and at the King’s Head, St. John’s Street, Clerkenwell. They were characterized by less mystery and more pleasantry than the Freemasons."—Bacchus and Venus, 1737. In the West the term applies to a low cart.
Is “humdrum” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.