mellow
[mel-oh]
- soft, sweet, and full-flavored from ripeness, as fruit.
- well-matured, as wines.
- soft and rich, as sound, tones, color, or light.
- made gentle and compassionate by age or maturity; softened.
- friable or loamy, as soil.
- mildly and pleasantly intoxicated or high.
- pleasantly agreeable; free from tension, discord, etc.: a mellow neighborhood.
- affably relaxed; easygoing; genial: a mellow teacher who is very popular with her students.
Show More
- to make or become mellow.
Show More
- Slang. a state, atmosphere, or mood of ease and gentle relaxation.
Show More
- mellow out, Slang.
- to become detached from worry, strife, stress, etc.; relax: After final exams let's go down to the beach and mellow out.
- to make more relaxed, agreeable, workable, etc.; soften or smooth: Chopin really mellows me out when I'm feeling tense.
Show More
Origin of mellow
1400–50; late Middle English mel(o)we, alteration (perhaps by dissimilation, in phrase meruw fruit) of Middle English meruw, Old English meru soft
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comAntonyms
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for mellowed
Contemporary Examples
But a decade had passed, and Cosby had mellowed, and when he was offered the prize for a third time in 2009, he accepted.
In the glass, the color is mellowed by the oak and is a mossier green.
Now, at the age of 46, he has been mellowed by an all-access pass to literary America, winning most of the prizes around.
Confessions of a Blasphemer: Sherman Alexie Talks New Book, Indian Humor and MoreJane Ciabattari
October 17, 2012
But for anyone who dreamed that Benedict had mellowed with age, the decision to hang the LCWR out to dry is a rude awakening.
But time and experience have mellowed the 54-year-old Oldman and sharpened his acting.
‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’: Oscar Nominees Gary Oldman and Peter StraughanLorenza Muñoz
February 15, 2012
Historical Examples
It is some weeks since they entered Paris, and spring has mellowed into summer.
Night and Morning, CompleteEdward Bulwer-Lytton
Even in Boston, mellowed though it was by culture, the classical was at a discount.
Heroes of the TelegraphJ. Munro
The charms of Imogen had been in turn heightened with joy, and mellowed with distress.
ImogenWilliam Godwin
And I found that it could be baited and mellowed only by a liberal tip.
The Book of KhalidAmeen Rihani
Even the late experience with Mark was mellowed by the present delight.
Janet of the DunesHarriet T. Comstock
mellow
- (esp of fruits) full-flavoured; sweet; ripe
- (esp of wines) well-matured
- (esp of colours or sounds) soft or rich
- kind-hearted, esp through maturity or old age
- genial, as through the effects of alcohol
- (of soil) soft and loamy
Show More
- to make or become mellow; soften; mature
- (foll by out) to become calm and relaxed or (esp of a drug) to have a calming or relaxing effect on (someone)
Show More
Word Origin
C15: perhaps from Old English meru soft (as through ripeness)
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
Word Origin and History for mellowed
mellow
adj.
mid-15c., melwe "soft, sweet, juicy" (of ripe fruit), perhaps related to melowe, variant of mele "ground grain" (see meal (2)), influenced by Middle English merow "soft, tender," from Old English mearu. Meaning "slightly drunk" is from 1680s. Mellow yellow "banana peel smoked in an effort to get high" is from 1967. Related: Mellowly; mellowness.
Show More
mellow
v.
1570s, from mellow (adj.). Related: Mellowed; mellowing.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper