charm
1 Americannoun
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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
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a trait or feature imparting this power.
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charms, attractiveness.
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a trinket to be worn on a bracelet, necklace, etc.
- Synonyms:
- bauble
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something worn or carried on one's person for its supposed magical effect; amulet.
- Synonyms:
- talisman
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any action supposed to have magical power.
- Synonyms:
- spell, enchantment
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the chanting or recitation of a magic verse or formula.
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a verse or formula credited with magical power.
- Synonyms:
- spell
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Physics. a quantum number assigned the value +1 for one kind of quark, −1 for its antiquark, and 0 for all other quarks. C
verb (used with object)
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to delight or please greatly by beauty, attractiveness, etc.; enchant.
She charmed us with her grace.
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to act upon (someone or something) with or as with a compelling or magical force.
to charm a bird from a tree.
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to endow with or protect by supernatural powers.
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to gain or influence through personal charm.
He charmed a raise out of his boss.
verb (used without object)
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to be fascinating or pleasing.
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to use charms.
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to act as a charm.
noun
noun
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the quality of pleasing, fascinating, or attracting people
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a pleasing or attractive feature
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a small object worn or kept for supposed magical powers of protection; amulet; talisman
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a trinket worn on a bracelet
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a magic spell; enchantment
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a formula or action used in casting such a spell
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physics an internal quantum number of certain elementary particles, used to explain some scattering experiments
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perfectly; successfully
verb
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to attract or fascinate; delight greatly
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to cast a magic spell on
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to protect, influence, or heal, supposedly by magic
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(tr) to influence or obtain by personal charm
he charmed them into believing him
noun
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One of the flavors of quarks, contributing to the charm number—a quantum number—for hadrons.
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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.
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See more at flavor
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”)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Downtown is walkable, the city leans into its Western charm, and the food scene holds its own.
From Salon
Navigating the cracked asphalt, I reply, “Part of my charm.”
From Literature
It was a charming space, damp and colorful and thriving due to Clare’s diligence.
From Literature
Our Gravedigger speaks to us, and to the moon, about her heart’s desire in charming cockney rhyming slang.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
