adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of charming
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English; charm 1 + -ing 2
Explanation
Something charming is usually pleasing or delightful. More rarely, it can be something supernatural. Charms are magical objects and something charming puts you under its spell. In most cases, we mean that only figuratively — if you spent a charming evening with friends, it means their company was so wonderful it was almost enchanting. Charming people have a special, almost magical way of making others like them. But if you're talking about a charming witch, you better watch out for her sorcery and magic tricks.
Vocabulary lists containing charming
Positive Words to Describe a Person
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Real Nice!
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Positive Words to Describe People, List 1
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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.
As in any good whodunit, there’s a colorful list of suspects, brought to life by Junyi Wu’s charming black-and-white illustrations.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Hood County locals are relentless in their fight against the data centers, packing county meetings and town halls and voicing their fierce opposition to the facilities threatening to transform their charming, small-town community.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
"Marjane was an extraordinary artist and a charming woman who embodied the joy of creation and the sorrow of exile and painful memories. We mourn her this morning," Cannes festival supremo Thierry Fremaux told AFP.
From Barron's • Jun. 4, 2026
Colonel James WHM Bishop, commander of Operation Shader, said Freeman was "larger than life and magnetically charming".
From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026
“I’ll be agreeable. I’ll gossip and giggle, and have horrors and raptures over any trifle you like. I rather enjoy this, and now I’ll imitate what is called ‘a charming girl’.
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
