Etymology

From deep +‎ seatedCategory:English compound terms#DEEPSEATED.

Pronunciation

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  Category:English terms with audio pronunciation#DEEPSEATED

Adjective

deep-seated (comparative more deep-seated or deeper-seated, superlative most deep-seated or deepest-seated)Category:English lemmas#DEEPSEATEDCategory:English adjectives#DEEPSEATEDCategory:English multiword terms#DEEPSEATEDCategory:English entries with incorrect language header#DEEPSEATEDCategory:Pages with entries#DEEP-SEATEDCategory:Pages with 1 entry#DEEP-SEATED

1. Physically located at a deep level.

   Antonyms: superficial, surface-level

   a deep-seated tumourCategory:English terms with usage examples#DEEPSEATED

   Weaknesses in the earth’s crust allow deep-seated heat to rise nearer to the surface.Category:English terms with usage examples#DEEPSEATED

   • 1741, Alexander Monro, The Anatomy of the Human Nerves‎, Edinburgh: W. Monro and W. Drummond, page 46:

     […] the Ach in the Teeth of the upper Jaw occasions a gnawing Pain deep seated in the Bones of the Face,

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   • 1852, Susanna Moodie, chapter 4, in Roughing it in the Bush‎, volume 2, London: Richard Bentley, page 76:

     winking knowingly with his comical little deep-seated black eyes

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   • 1961, Leon Uris, Mila 18‎, Garden City, NY: Doubleday, Part 3, Chapter 7, p. 328:

     He washed [the food] down with beer and produced a deep-seated belch.

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   • 2010, Gary Shteyngart, Super Sad True Love Story‎, New York: Random House, page 187:

     Some of the older people had started weeping, the kind of hemorrhaging, deep-seated sound that can only bring relief to the sufferer.

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   • 2022 September 21, Howard Johnston, “Regional News: Western”, in RAIL, number 966, page 26:

     Swindon: Deep-seated heavy corrosion in the cast-iron station canopy supports may force their replacement when funding is available.

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2. (figurative) Firmly implanted or established in thought or behavior and difficult to change; deeply ingrained.

   Synonyms: bred-in-the-bone, deep-rooted, deep-lying

   She has a deep-seated belief in the essential goodness of human nature.Category:English terms with usage examples#DEEPSEATED

   • 1834, Maria Edgeworth, chapter 13, in Helen‎, volume 3, London: Richard Bentley, pages 261–262:

     […] instead of the bright beams that used to play in those eyes, there was now a dark deep-seated sorrow, almost despair.

     Category:English terms with quotations#DEEPSEATED

   • 1886 January 5, Robert Louis Stevenson, “Remarkable Incident of Dr. Lanyon”, in Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC, page 56:

     […] a look in the eye and quality of manner that seemed to testify to some deep-seated terror of the mind.

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   • 1989, Shashi Tharoor, The Great Indian Novel‎, New York: Arcade Publishing, Book 18, p. 406:

     Godmen are India’s major export of the last two decades […] . Once in a while, however, they also acquire a domestic following, by appealing to the deep-seated reverence in all Indians for spiritual wisdom and inner peace,

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   • 2004, Colm Tóibín, chapter 11, in The Master‎, London: Picador, page 316:

     Alice, his sister-in-law, he was sure, had meant her offer kindly, and William’s advice had not been ill-intentioned, but they both suffered from a need, he felt, so deep-seated as to be well beyond their understanding, to have him act on their advice.

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   • 2024 April 3, Howard Johnston, “Network News: Weak bosses and staff blamed for Crossrail overspend”, in RAIL, number 1006, page 20:

     However, little was done, and it was only following new skilled appointments to the Crossrail board that it got a firm grip, with daily meetings held to resolve many of the deep-seated issues.

     Category:English terms with quotations#DEEPSEATED

See also

• deep-seeded (nonstandard, eggcorn)