delight
Americannoun
-
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)
verb (used without object)
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
Related Words
See pleasure.
Other Word Forms
- delighter noun
- delightingly adverb
- delightless adjective
- self-delight noun
- undelighting adjective
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 ( delectable ); (noun) respelling (as above) of Middle English delit, from Anglo-French, Old French, derivative of the verb
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.
For Victor Glover -- the first person of color to fly around the Moon -- a lot of that raw delight arrived at takeoff.
From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026
These numbers cannot convey the giddy, fearful delight of being physically coupled to this 6,371-pound hammer when it leaves Thor’s hand.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026
“They Will Kill You” feels like helping my two-year-old niece put together a fairly simple, 12-piece puzzle, and watching her exclaim with delight before asking if we can assemble it again.
From Salon • Mar. 29, 2026
Tudor, who has had nothing to celebrate since succeeding sacked Thomas Frank, pumped his fists in delight towards the travelling Spurs fans, who celebrated wildly as their team finally got the reward they merited.
From BBC • Mar. 15, 2026
Which made Tobias start crooning stuff like “good girl” and “nice doggie” while his little sister squealed with delight.
From "Maybe He Just Likes You" by Barbara Dee
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.
