idyllic

[ahy-dil-ik]

adjective

1. (of a setting or event) suitable for or suggestive of pastoral literature or art, which portrays an idealized scene of peace, charm, and rustic simplicity.

   You won't find a more idyllic spot for a wedding.

   Synonyms: arcadian, pastoral, pastoral, sylvan

2. relating to or characteristic of an idyll, a mode of literature or art which portrays an idealized rustic life of peace, charm, and simplicity.

   The painting’s every detail fulfills the idyllic trope of a bounteous natural world freely offering itself.

Other Word Forms

• idyllically adverb
• nonidyllic adjective
• nonidyllically adverb
• unidyllic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of idyllic¹

First recorded in 1855–60; idyll + -ic

Example Sentences

Marion was a small, idyllic town of about fifty-five hundred people set in the lush, tree-covered mountains of southwestern Virginia near the Hungry Mother State Park.

Read more on Literature

He described the University of Chicago as an "idyllic academic institution" where he was "instilled with the capacity for critical thought and an ethical compulsion not to suffer fools who impeded his search for truth".

Read more on BBC

There is no mention of the allegations that clash with this idyllic appeal.

Read more on BBC

The camera knits them all together in long shots, swirling around their idyllic backyard.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Even when your love is the subject of your art, captured on camera for decades, things behind the scenes are never quite as idyllic as one might think.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• bucolic 
• idealized www.thesaurus.com
• pastoral 
• peaceful 
• picturesque 
• rustic 
• unspoiled