dulcet

[duhl-sit]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dulcet ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

pleasant to the ear; melodious: the dulcet tones of the cello.

pleasant or agreeable to the eye or the feelings; soothing.

Archaic. sweet to the taste or smell.

noun

an organ stop resembling the dulciana but an octave higher.

Origin of dulcet

1350–1400; obsolete dulce (< Latin, neuter of dulcis sweet) + -et; replacing Middle English doucet < Middle French; see douce

Related formsdul·cet·ly, adverbdul·cet·ness, noun

Synonyms for dulcet

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dulcet ON THESAURUS.COM

1. musical, tuneful, mellifluous, sweet-sounding.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for dulcet

agreeable, musical, pleasurable, sweet

Examples from the Web for dulcet

Historical Examples of dulcet

They must be taught to speak in other voices than the dulcet tones of peeresses.
All Roads Lead to Calvary
Jerome K. Jerome
A soft blending Of dulcet instruments came charmingly;950 And then a hymn.
Endymion
John Keats
It was no use; he managed somehow to make his dulcet notes heard.
The Chronicles of a Gay Gordon
Jos Maria Gordon
Before the world had hardened it its tones might have been soft and dulcet.
The Strange Case of Mortimer Fenley
Louis Tracy
"He is on the lawn, dear Rosa," said Falcon, in his most dulcet tones.
A Simpleton
Charles Reade

British Dictionary definitions for dulcet

dulcet

adjective

(of a sound) soothing or pleasant; sweet

Derived Formsdulcetly, adverbdulcetness, noun

Word Origin for dulcet

C14: from Latin dulcis sweet

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for dulcet

adj.

late 14c., from Old French doucet, diminutive of doux "sweet," earlier dulz, from Latin dulcis, from PIE *dlk-wi-, suffixed form of root *dlk-u- "sweet" (cf. glucose).