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 instance, she said, she made three small baskets for the children of a friend and was delighted when one used her basket to carry flower petals to toss during a wedding.
From Los Angeles Times
We raised our children in that house, and they, to our delight, were now bringing their children over most weekends.
From Los Angeles Times
On Boxing Day, Sir Keir said he was "delighted" the activist had arrived in the UK and had been "reunited with his loved ones" following his release from an Egyptian jail.
From BBC
"We've been waiting such a long time for Bobby to find a wonderful home and we are so delighted that he finally has."
From BBC
His daughter, a supporter of Reform UK, turned him on to social media, which he has delighted in using to share old ideas.
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.
