Deafening means so loud that you can hear nothing else. A drill, a jet, a stadium after a goal.
It is an exaggeration in most uses, since almost nothing you meet will actually damage your hearing, and that is fine because the word is about the feeling. It attaches to noise, roar, applause and silence. That last one is a favourite paradox, since a deafening silence is one so complete that it becomes as noticeable as noise, usually because somebody refused to comment. The verb deafen is much rarer.
1adjectivedeafeningExtremely loud.
“The noise inside the shed was deafening.”