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"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Beowulf vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Enjoy! Synonyms for "Pleasure"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
But boy, does the audience shiver with delight watching Ghidorah stomp buildings to rubble while the sound design rattles our seats.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
The video is an L.A. dirtbag delight — she pops a Cronenberg-worthy zit, fights cops in a VR headset and rides a “Gaymo” off to meet a crush.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
Organized by the Frick’s curator Giulio Dalvit and a team of experts assembled by him, “Siena: The Art of Bronze” is a delight and an education.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
And his delight was clear as he whooped over the team radio on his slowing down lap.
From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026
In fact, the robot felt something like delight that she had made it to the northern ocean, at last.
From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown
Of all the tawdry delights in “Verity” — Michael Showalter’s adaptation of bestselling author Colleen Hoover’s massively popular psychological thriller — the best and most unexpected is how well the film hides its secrets.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
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
Starr is criminally sarcastic, and delights in winding people up.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Ella, Jason, and Brigit crept along the street, taking in all of its dark delights.
From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton
In his act, he has delighted in skewering organized religion and traditional family life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2026
Lizzie says she was "delighted" when the chain suddenly appeared from the pram.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
His fellow host, Greg Gutfeld, apparently delighted, replied, “Good for you, fear porn!”
From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026
My mom is delighted with my success, but her attitude toward me hasn’t changed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
On hearing the tale, Don Quixote was delighted.
From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios
Marlene Cooper has paid $100 a week to get a box of five meals from Blue Apron for the last decade, delighting in dinners like chicken enchilada skillet and cilantro paneer and chickpea curry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 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
A film like “The Housemaid” delighting viewers this much and making boatloads of cash doing it is a sure sign of cinema’s vitality.
From Salon ● Jan. 31, 2026
Fans have been delighting in his expressive range, with his wide eyes, blushing cheeks and gaping jaw regularly stealing the show, and memes spreading across social media in tribute.
From BBC ● Jan. 23, 2026
“Oh, I don’t play with that anymore. It’s for babies,” I said, delighting in her look of disappointment.
From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
