adjective
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having a tune that is pleasant to the ear
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of or relating to melody; melodic
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of melodious
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English word from Medieval Latin word melōdiōsus. See melody, -ous
Explanation
Use the adjective melodious to describe something that sounds like music, like a babbling brook or a little boy's soft humming. Anything that makes a pleasant, tuneful sound can be called melodious, which makes sense when you spot the word melody in melodious. Both have a root in common, the Greek word meloidia, which means "singing, or a tune for lyric poetry." It, in turn, comes from melos, or "song."
Vocabulary lists containing melodious
Excerpt from "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"
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List 8
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Melodious Motors Relative History An anonymous columnist* of the history-loving New York Times had fun last week standing Clio on her head.
From Time Magazine Archive
He heard the wee bird singing, For its notes were wondrous clear; As if wedding bells were ringing, Melodious to the ear.
From The Modern Scottish Minstrel, Volume V. The Songs of Scotland of the Past Half Century by Rogers, Charles
Melodious masses proper to the service were ever and anon chanted by the papal choir, and overpowering perfume was diffused around by a hundred censers.
From Auriol or, The Elixir of Life by Ainsworth, W. Harrison
They searched round the hill without avail, north, south, east, and west, till all, both men and dogs, were quite scattered; and Finn and Dara the Melodious were left alone.
From Old Celtic Romances by Unknown
Let us approve the singer of “Shallow rivers, by whose falls Melodious birds sing madrigals.”
From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 16 (of 25) by Stevenson, Robert Louis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
