mellifluous

American  

[muh-lif-loo-uhs] / məˈlɪf lu əs /

adjective

1. sweetly or smoothly flowing; sweet-sounding: mellifluous tones.

   a mellifluous voice;

   mellifluous tones.

   Synonyms:

   harmonious, dulcet, musical, melodious

2. flowing with honey; sweetened with or as if with honey.

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mellifluous British  

/ mɪˈlɪflʊəs /

adjective

1. (of sounds or utterances) smooth or honeyed; sweet

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• mellifluously
  adverb
• unmellifluously
  adverb
• unmellifluous
  adjective
• mellifluousness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of mellifluous

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin mellifluus, equivalent to Latin melli- (stem of mel ) “honey” + -flu(ere) “to flow” + -us adjective suffix ( see -ous)

Explanation

Use the adjective mellifluous to describe something that sounds sweet and smooth, like the honeyed voice of a late-night radio DJ. You might think that the mell in mellifluous has something to do with mellow, but it actually comes from the Greek word meli, meaning "honey." The word is related to the mythological nymph Melissa, whose name means "honeybee." Melissa is said to have discovered that the smooth, sweet stuff that honeybees produce is edible. The word mellifluous combines meli with the Greek root fluere, meaning "to flow," so that something that is mellifluous sounds as if it is flowing like honey.

Example Sentences

"Have you heard Neil's voice? Mellifluous, I tell you."

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2017

All things being equal, William Faulkner got off lightly: he was merely nicknamed "Old Corndrinking Mellifluous."

From Time Magazine Archive

Mellifluous Congressman Upshaw of Georgia was not so indefinite in his remarks.

From Time Magazine Archive

Unmingled wine, Mellifluous, undecaying, and divine, Which now, some ages from his race concealed, The hoary sire in gratitude revealed....

From The Cruise of the Betsey or, A Summer Ramble Among the Fossiliferous Deposits of the Hebrides. With Rambles of a Geologist or, Ten Thousand Miles Over the Fossiliferous Deposits of Scotland by Symonds, W. S. (William Samuel)