darling
[ dahr-ling ]
/ ˈdɑr lɪŋ /
noun
a person very dear to another; one dearly loved.
(sometimes initial capital letter) an affectionate or familiar term of address.
a person or thing in great favor; a favorite: She was the darling of café society.
adjective
very dear; dearly loved: my darling child.
favorite; cherished.
Informal. charming; cute; lovable: What a darling baby!
RELATED CONTENT
RELATED WORDS
baby, lamb, love, sweetie, angel, pet, treasure, sugar, truelove, girlfriend, beloved, lover, dear, flame, friend, boyfriend, dearest, dearie, precious, honeybunch
Nearby words
- darksome,
- darktown,
- darky,
- darlan,
- darlene,
- darling downs,
- darling range,
- darling river,
- darling's disease,
- darling, jay norwood
Origin of darling
Darling
[ dahr-ling ]
/ ˈdɑr lɪŋ /
noun
Jay Nor·wood [nawr-woo d] /ˈnɔr wʊd/, Ding, 1876–1962, U.S. political cartoonist.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for darling
darling
/ (ˈdɑːlɪŋ) /
noun
a person very much loved: often used as a term of address
a favouritethe teacher's darling
adjective (prenominal)
beloved
much admired; pleasinga darling hat
Word Origin for darling
Old English dēorling; see dear, -ling 1
Darling
/ (ˈdɑːlɪŋ) /
noun
Grace. 1815–42, English national heroine, famous for her rescue (1838) of some shipwrecked sailors with her father, a lighthouse keeper
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
darling
Old English deorling "darling, favorite minion," double diminutive of deor "dear" (see dear (adj.)). The vowel shift from -e- to -a- (16c.) is usual for -er- followed by a consonant. "It is better to be An olde mans derlyng, than a yong mans werlyng" (1562).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper