charm

¹ American  

[chahrm] / tʃɑrm /

noun

1. a power of pleasing or attracting, as through personality or beauty: the charm of a mountain lake.

   charm of manner;

   the charm of a mountain lake.

   Synonyms:

   allurement, attractiveness

2. a trait or feature imparting this power.

3. charms, attractiveness.

4. a trinket to be worn on a bracelet, necklace, etc.

   Synonyms:

   bauble

5. something worn or carried on one's person for its supposed magical effect; amulet.

   Synonyms:

   talisman

6. any action supposed to have magical power.

   Synonyms:

   spell, enchantment

7. the chanting or recitation of a magic verse or formula.

8. a verse or formula credited with magical power.

   Synonyms:

   spell

9. Physics. a quantum number assigned the value +1 for one kind of quark, −1 for its antiquark, and 0 for all other quarks. C

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verb (used with object)

1. to delight or please greatly by beauty, attractiveness, etc.; enchant.

   She charmed us with her grace.

   Synonyms:

   bewitch, allure, ravish, enrapture, entrance, captivate, fascinate

2. to act upon (someone or something) with or as with a compelling or magical force.

   to charm a bird from a tree.

3. to endow with or protect by supernatural powers.

4. to gain or influence through personal charm.

   He charmed a raise out of his boss.

verb (used without object)

1. to be fascinating or pleasing.

2. to use charms.

3. to act as a charm.

charm ² American  

[chahrm] / tʃɑrm /

noun

British Dialect.

1. blended singing of birds, children, etc.

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charm ¹ British  

/ tʃɑːm /

noun

1. dialect a loud noise, as of a number of people chattering or of birds singing

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charm ² British  

/ tʃɑːm /

noun

1. the quality of pleasing, fascinating, or attracting people

2. a pleasing or attractive feature

3. a small object worn or kept for supposed magical powers of protection; amulet; talisman

4. a trinket worn on a bracelet

5. a magic spell; enchantment

6. a formula or action used in casting such a spell

7. physics an internal quantum number of certain elementary particles, used to explain some scattering experiments

8. perfectly; successfully

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verb

1. to attract or fascinate; delight greatly

2. to cast a magic spell on

3. to protect, influence, or heal, supposedly by magic

4. (tr) to influence or obtain by personal charm

   he charmed them into believing him

charm Scientific  

/ chärm /

1. One of the flavors of quarks, contributing to the charm number—a quantum number—for hadrons.

2. A charmed particle is a particle that contains at least one charmed quark or charmed antiquark. The charmed quark was hypothesized to account for the longevity of the J/psi particle and to explain differences in the behavior of leptons and hadrons.

3. See more at flavor

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charm Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing charm

• (charm the) pants off
• work like a charm

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Other Word Forms

• charmedly adverb
• charmer noun
• charmless adjective
• charmlessly adverb

Etymology

Origin of charm¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English charme “magical verse or incantation,” from Old French, from Latin carmen “song, magical formula,” from unattested canmen (by dissimilation), equivalent to can(ere) “to sing” + -men noun suffix

Origin of charm²

First recorded in 1520–30 as cherme, dialect variant of chirm “noise, din,” perhaps associated with charm ¹ ( def. ) (in the sense “chanting of a magic verse”)

Explanation

A charm is a magical spell or an object that brings luck: it's also a quality of being attractive and pleasing. To charm someone is to attract them. There are several types of charms, but they mostly relate to attraction and good luck. A lucky coin is a charm. The spell of a witch that entrances you is a charm. People with magnetic personalities, who make you want to hang out with them, have charm and are therefore considered charming. Also, to charm someone is to attract them and win them over. Popular politicians charm the masses, and teachers' pets charm their teachers.

Example Sentences

That was both its charm and, eventually, its undoing.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

Maybe the third time will be a charm.

From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026

Lola the parrot is home after airport charm offense.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026

His linguistic gifts and poetic sensibility for the English language, then in its infancy, gave his translation a vibrancy, immediacy, charm and clarity that have never been matched.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

There would be no handsome scholar to charm her father, no clever merchant who could make her family’s debts disappear.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

Related Words

• attract
• beguile
• bewitch
• cajole
• captivate
• delight
• enamor
• enrapture
• enthrall
• fascinate
• hypnotize
• mesmerize
• please
• tickle
• wow