deaden

deaden (something) with (something)

To induce numbness, as with an anesthetic agent. They deadened my gums with some sort of gel before the procedure.
See also: deaden
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

deaden something with something

to dull or anesthetize pain with something. The doctor deadened the area with an injection before she began to stitch. I will deaden the pain with a local anesthetic.
See also: deaden
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • deaden (something) with (something)
  • deaden with
  • gel
  • flap (one's) gums
  • flap gums
  • flap your gums
  • ain’t 1
  • beat gums
  • beat one’s gums
  • gum
References in periodicals archive
Moreover, he says, the procedure can be repeated if the deadened nerve ever regenerates and the headaches return.
Hot prospects for quelling cluster headaches
He said: "It deadened the pain and I was able to bat without discomfort."
Cricket: GOUGH'S WAIT OVER
Then one Sunday morning at a coffee shop in the heart of Chicago's Boystown, I read Andrew Sullivan's November 10, 1996, New York Times Magazine cover story, "When Plagues End." He described friends who months before had been "hobbling along, their cheekbones poking out of their skin, their eyes deadened and looking down." Upon taking these new drugs, they "were suddenly restored into some strange spectacle of health, gazing around as amazed as I was to see them alive."
Protease inhibitors November 1996: Jon Barrett describes the impact of a New York Times story heralding the drugs. (Bold beginnings)
A: THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, deadens the neurons in the hippocampus, the part of the brain that's in charge of short-term memory.
Drug and the body--it isn't pretty
Thermal reclamation uses heat to bum off any organic matter attached to the sand grains and depends on a scrubber to knock off deadened clay and fines.
Sand reclamation = sand savings with proper planning
The key was to isolate the chemical in snail poison that deadens pain but otherwise leaves the nervous system unharmed.
Venom: Miracle Medicine?
The totalitarian states have shown that it can be manipulated or deadened. CS Lewis in Surprised by Joy refers to the `false conscience', which he compares to St Paul's idea of the law.
Discovering inner freedom: Philip Boobbyer, a lecturer in modern European history at the University of Kent, puts cleaning one's slate in a wider philosophical context
Unfortunately, the stiff-upper-lip attitude that propelled him to achieve career goals deadens his writing style.
Benjamin O. Davis Jr., American: An Autobiography
You can charge and chamber a round five times before you risk a deadened round that won't fire.
Dented primer OK
Matt has not had his brain deadened; he is a favorite of El Patron, reminding him of his lost youth, though the man's nasty, conspiring family hates Matt, considering him 'livestock.'....
The House of the Scorpion
Walking to a press briefing along Whitehall that morning was a delightful experience, the noise of the traffic deadened by the snow and the dark statues of various war leaders given a candy coating of white along their prominent features.
London Diary: Snow-go zone
However, there is an underlying earnestness to Common Ground that deadens its impact.
Eugene Ballet Company, Silva Concert Hall, May 23-24, 1998
Bob Zuppke: Egotism is the anesthetic that deadens the pain of stupidity.
Words to coach by from football's greatest teachers
Optimism and hope become choked and deadened Buried beneath the dust and ash Of intolerance and hatred.
At the heart's core
A deadened sound ("thud") may indicate the presence of a crack.
Tips for maximizing crucible life in your aluminum foundry