lilt

[lilt]

noun

1. rhythmic swing or cadence.

2. a lilting song or tune.

verb (used with or without object)

1. to sing or play in a light, tripping, or rhythmic manner.

lilt

/ lɪlt /

noun

1. (in music) a jaunty rhythm

2. a buoyant motion

verb

1. (of a melody) to have a lilt

2. to move in a buoyant manner

Other Word Forms

• lilting adjective
• liltingly adverb
• liltingness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of lilt¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb lilte, lulte “to sound an alarm; lift up (one's voice)”; perhaps akin to Dutch, Low German lul “pipe,” lullen “to lull,” Norwegian lilla “to sing,” of imitative origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of lilt¹

C14 lulten, origin obscure

Example Sentences

On Sapphire - the album's best song - he enlists Indian superstar Arjit Singh for a duet, trading vocals in a mixture of English, Hindi and Punjabi over a lilting beat.

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Reflecting his heritage, the music is full of Afrobeat rhythms, log drums, spiritual mantras and lilting guitar lines.

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There are several performance scenes that showcase Madekwe’s ability to croon in a convincing limber lilt but little engagement with his actual music.

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But the result was thin, devoid of intonation or personality, and it had an American lilt.

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His mournful Ethiopian melodic lilt stood out like nothing else in Top 40, and he hung onto enough art-freak sensibility that he could headline the Super Bowl halftime show with dancers in full-face plastic-surgery bandages.

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