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• darling
  darling

  noun

  a person very dear to another; one dearly loved.
• Darling
  Darling

  noun

  Jay Norwood Ding, 1876–1962, U.S. political cartoonist.

darling

¹ American  

[dahr-ling] / ˈdɑr lɪŋ /

noun

• darlings
  plural

1. a person very dear to another; one dearly loved.

2. (sometimes initial capital letter) an affectionate or familiar term of address.

3. a person or thing in great favor; a favorite.

   She was the darling of caf é society.

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adjective

1. very dear; dearly loved.

   my darling child.

2. favorite; cherished.

3. Informal. charming; cute; lovable.

   What a darling baby!

Darling ² American  

[dahr-ling] / ˈdɑr lɪŋ /

noun

1. Jay Norwood Ding, 1876–1962, U.S. political cartoonist.

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darling ¹ British  

/ ˈdɑːlɪŋ /

noun

1. a person very much loved: often used as a term of address

2. a favourite

   the teacher's darling

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adjective

1. beloved

2. much admired; pleasing

   a darling hat

Darling ² British  

/ ˈdɑːlɪŋ /

noun

1. Grace. 1815–42, English national heroine, famous for her rescue (1838) of some shipwrecked sailors with her father, a lighthouse keeper

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• darlingness
  noun
• darlingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• darlings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of darling

before 900; Middle English derling, Old English dēorling. See dear ¹, -ling ¹

Explanation

Use the word darling for someone you love or care for deeply. Your sweet old grandmother probably calls you darling. You can describe someone as being your darling, or address them that way: "I missed you so much while I was working on that fishing boat, darling!" Another way to use the word is for a generally lovable person: "Everyone adores Timmy, he's such a darling." The Old English root is deorling, a diminutive of deor, "dear."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

darling Darling darlings

Walmart by 1981 was already a Wall Street darling valued at over $1 billion, but its promise was selling everything to everyone.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

While the stock was an investor darling during the pandemic era, the company has found itself in a more competitive payment-technology market since then.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 28, 2026

Ainsley has a reputation for being a festival darling.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

When “It Ends” premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March 2025, it was not exactly the runaway darling of the year’s programming.

From Salon ● Aug. 24, 2026

“May I introduce myself to your darling daughter, ma’am?”

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Pip Burley, who worked on the ITV 90s comedy-drama The Darling Buds of May, recalled meeting the Hollywood star in the reception room of his final casting session.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

“There is no question many people will have such machines in their homes eventually,” Darling told me, “and develop real emotional connections to them.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

Still, Goldman Sachs recently highlighted an “insensitive portfolio” of stocks with low sensitivity to AI, including names like Darling Ingredients and Kenvue.

From Barron's ● May 28, 2026

Darling was a Newcastle United fan, and named his dog after Toon Army hero Shearer.

From BBC ● May 18, 2026

PJ’s on Darling Avenue, still serving their daily special.

From "The Parker Inheritance" by Varian Johnson

He also shot portraits of Hollywood darlings like Marilyn Monroe and Lucille Ball, plus action shots of musical legends Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and Michael Jackson, to name a few.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

Earlier this year, software stocks, once market darlings, became toxic as AI models’ coding capabilities spooked investors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

Rotating away from erstwhile AI darlings has been in vogue of late.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026

Fast-casual restaurant stocks were the growth darlings of the postpandemic dining boom, but the past year has been a reality check.

From Barron's ● May 6, 2026

Everyone but the children knew that she always proclaimed her darlings the winner, when she could get away with it.

From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead