blithe
- joyous, merry, or happy in disposition; glad; cheerful: Everyone loved her for her blithe spirit.
- without thought or regard; carefree; heedless: a blithe indifference to anyone's feelings.
Origin of blithe
Synonyms for blithe
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comAntonyms for blithe
Related Words for blitheness
jocundity, merriment, sprightliness, joyfulness, glee, joviality, jolliness, jollity, mirth, lightheartedness, mirthfulness, cheerfulness, happiness, carefreenessExamples from the Web for blitheness
Historical Examples of blitheness
He wore an air of blitheness which, though silent, was overdone.
BonaventureGeorge Washington Cable
Certainly of Greek blitheness and directness there was no trace.
Robert ElsmereMrs. Humphry Ward
Thereupon they parted with no blitheness, and Cormac went to his ship.
“Not in it with the Cubs,” he announced, blitheness in his manner.
What's-His-NameGeorge Barr McCutcheon
All the blitheness was with Nikolaus; we others could not shake off our depression.
blithe
- very happy or cheerful
- heedless; casual and indifferent
Word Origin for blithe
Word Origin and History for blitheness
blithe
Old English bliþe "joyous, kind, cheerful, pleasant," from Proto-Germanic *blithiz "gentle, kind" (cf. Old Saxon bliði "bright, happy," Middle Dutch blide, Dutch blijde, Old Norse bliðr "mild, gentle," Old High German blidi "gay, friendly," Gothic bleiþs "kind, friendly, merciful").
Rare since 16c. No cognates outside Germanic. "The earlier application was to the outward expression of kindly feeling, sympathy, affection to others, as in Gothic and ON.; but in OE. the word had come more usually to be applied to the external manifestation of one's own pleased or happy frame of mind, and hence even to the state itself." [OED]