lilt
rhythmic swing or cadence.
a lilting song or tune.
to sing or play in a light, tripping, or rhythmic manner.
Origin of lilt
1Other words from lilt
- lilt·ing·ly, adverb
- lilt·ing·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use lilt in a sentence
“My dad freaked out when the tabloid reporter turned up,” Cumming says, in his lilting Scottish brogue.
With his sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, and lilting Irish tones, Mosse clearly stuck out as a foreigner in the Congo region.
Seeing War Vividly: Richard Mosse Stars at the Venice Biennale | Amelia Martyn-Hemphill | June 3, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTSister Simone speaks with a gentle, lilting voice, but her words are pointed and direct.
Nuns vs. Romney: The Sisters Hit the Battleground State of Ohio | Christine Howey | June 28, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST“We always have fun,” she confided in her lilting Slovenian purr.
The young Englishman's hair, pale in color and very smooth, was worn longer than the fashion, the ends lilting.
Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
And at the merry lilting of it Bibbs's father's son took heart to forget some of his trepidation.
The Turmoil | Booth TarkingtonSuddenly the melody changed to a glad little lilting measure, as sweet as love itself.
Then she strode on with a lilting joy, humming a song and putting her horse to his paces to keep up with her.
What Will People Say? | Rupert HughesAs she spoke the doors at the end of the dancing-hall opened, and the musicians in the gallery began to play a lilting strain.
A German Pompadour | Marie Hay
British Dictionary definitions for lilt
/ (lɪlt) /
(in music) a jaunty rhythm
a buoyant motion
(of a melody) to have a lilt
to move in a buoyant manner
Origin of lilt
1Derived forms of lilt
- lilting, adjective
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
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