endearment

[ en-deer-muh nt ]

/ ɛnˈdɪər mənt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR endearment ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act of endearing.

the state of being endeared.

something that endears; an action or utterance showing affection: to murmur endearments.

RELATED WORDS

love, affection, fondness

Nearby words

endaural, endbrain, endcap, endear, endearing, endearment, endeavor, endeavour, endecott, endemic, endemic hematuria

Origin of endearment

First recorded in 1605–15; endear + -ment

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

Examples from the Web for endearment

Bae,” for example, is a term of endearment that is either short for “baby” or an acronym for “before anyone else.
Feminist, Bae, Turnt: Time’s ‘Worst Words’ List Is Sexist and Racist|Samantha Allen|November 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
(She addresses me in various terms of endearment, as one would an old friend, and invites me to swim in her pool after lunch).
Gail Sheehy Books Passage to the Past|Lizzie Crocker|September 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“The thing that pops into my head is the Shirley MacLaine quote from Terms of Endearment,” said Emmerich.
‘The Americans’: Noah Emmerich on Playing Stan Beeman, ‘Jane Got a Gun,’ and More|Jason Lynch|May 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Terms of Endearment got made because Polly Platt was so persistent.
Larry McMurtry: How I Write|Noah Charney|April 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST

My mom remembers us actually watching Terms of Endearment with my father when he was sick.
Speak, Faulty Memory: Why Memoir Writing Is Harder Than You Think|Dave Bry|April 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Now, clean-ness, or neat-ness, is one of the elements that make hypocoristic terms (or terms of endearment) applicable.
Opuscula|Robert Gordon Latham
Without knowing why, she felt an instinctive repugnance to this stranger, notwithstanding her words of endearment.
Jack's Ward|Horatio Alger, Jr.
"Oh, it is just a term of endearment," said a woman's voice in answer.
The Charm of Ireland|Burton Egbert Stevenson
How often when she slept had he heard those lips breathe his name with terms of endearment!
The Weird Sisters, Volume II (of 3)|Richard Dowling
"No, my precious one," I replied; I sometimes use terms of endearment to the members of my domestic circle.
Punch, or the London Charivari, January 12th, 1895|Various

British Dictionary definitions for endearment

endearment

/ (ɪnˈdɪəmənt) /

noun

something that endears, such as an affectionate utterance

the act or process of endearing or the condition of being endeared

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

endearment

noun

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of endearment

Examples from the Web for endearment

British Dictionary definitions for endearment

endearment

noun