delight
Americannoun
-
delights
plural
-
a high degree of pleasure or enjoyment; joy; rapture.
She takes great delight in her job.
- Synonyms:
- delectation, transport
- Antonyms:
- distress
-
something that gives great pleasure.
The dance was a delight to see.
- Antonyms:
- disappointment
verb (used with object)
-
delights,
present (3rd person singular)
-
delighted,
past participle, past
-
delighting
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
delights,
present (3rd person singular)
-
delighted,
past participle, past
-
delighting
present participle
verb
-
(tr) to please greatly
-
to take great pleasure (in)
noun
-
extreme pleasure or satisfaction; joy
-
something that causes this
music was always his delight
Synonym Usage
See pleasure.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
delightsimple
-
delightssimple
-
have delightedperfect
-
has delightedperfect
-
am delightingprogressive
-
are delightingprogressive
-
is delightingprogressive
-
have been delightingperfect progressive
-
has been delightingperfect progressive
Past
-
delightedsimple
-
had delightedperfect
-
was delightingprogressive
-
were delightingprogressive
-
had been delightingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of delight
First recorded in 1175–1225; (verb) respelling, after light 1, of earlier delite, Middle English deliten, from Anglo-French deliter, Old French delitier, from Latin delectāre ( see delectable); (noun) respelling (as above) of Middle English delit, from Anglo-French, Old French, derivative of the verb
Explanation
When you like someone, you might say, "She is an absolute delight." You mean you think she's great: a delight is a source of joy, and to delight is to cause pleasure. Babies are particularly good at expressing delight in new things. Delight is often associated with an initial impression—one says, "She continues to delight us," to suggest that the first impression continues. The word delight derives from the Latin delectare "to charm," which also gives us delectable, and the same lighthearted sense of pure, uncomplicated pleasure.
Vocabulary lists containing delight
Words inspired by "Inside Out"
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Enjoy! Synonyms for "Pleasure"
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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.
See Examples For:
Between every line of Ms. Haberman and Mr. Swan’s huffing disapproval of Mr. Trump’s reckless ignorance and impulsivity is their delight in having him as a subject, a ticket to the bestseller list.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Some routinely put on a show: NYC0318, a whale also seen by AFP on a recent outing, often charms whale watchers with sensational lunge-feeds, breaching the water and prompting shrieks of delight.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Another announces, with delight, “I made these incredible marinated white beans and put them on toast.”
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
Experiencing Coward outdoors on a summer night is both an amusing delight and an expositional slog.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Briefly, still asleep, the tears stopped, and her face creased and upturned itself into a sudden laugh—a choke of delight, her eyes screwed shut.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Perry and her partner, Canada's former prime minister Justin Trudeau, sampled the delights of Mykonos.
From Barron's ● Aug. 22, 2026
Meyer wrote the script a decade ago about her friendship with producer Maggie McLean, but no doubt she knows better than anyone how much the smart and sensible-projecting Stewart delights in acting the fool.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Ms. Kavenna delights in dropping tantalizing clues that never build to clear conclusions.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
For those very delights — oh, and the art too, yeah, sure — are why many people still want to go, a desire that watching “The Man Will Burn” will only strengthen.
From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026
This fact delights her—finally, a formal emancipation from studenthood.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
On the pending job apocalypse, Mr. Altman said, “I’m delighted to be wrong about that.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
I was delighted for Leeds boss Daniel Farke that he proved people wrong by keeping them up last year.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
During a BBC Radio Oxford interview, she returned the penny to a delighted Mead so that it could stay in the house and "continue the story".
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
“Any time River gets any kind of small win, I’m delighted for him,” Lowden said in a video chat from his parents’ home in Scotland.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
I said I should be delighted to do it.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
The giant green character, complete with distinctive blue shirt, has become one of the most-loved regulars on the UK ballooning circuit, delighting crowds wherever he lands.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Iran responded in the 64th minute with Rezaeian’s cross headed home by Mohammad Mohebi, tying the game and delighting fans.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
It’s easy to adore the star in the mid-to-late 1950s when he’s young and svelte, scandalizing and delighting America with his wiggly hips, popularizing a new sound dubbed rock ‘n’ roll.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 24, 2026
When part of a SpaceX rocket re-entered Earth's atmosphere exactly a year ago, it created a spectacuglar fireball that streaked across Europe's skies, delighting stargazers and sending a team of scientists rushing towards their instruments.
From Barron's ● Feb. 19, 2026
He turned from one to the other, paternal, delighting them.
From "Typical American" by Gish Jen
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.
