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Delight

 - 3 dictionary results

de⋅light

  [di-lahyt]
Use Delight in a Sentence
–noun
1. a high degree of pleasure or enjoyment; joy; rapture: She takes great delight in her job.
2. something that gives great pleasure: The dance was a delight to see.
–verb (used with object)
3. to give great pleasure, satisfaction, or enjoyment to; please highly: The show delighted everyone.
–verb (used without object)
4. to have great pleasure; take pleasure (fol. by in or an infinitive): She delights in going for long walks in the country.
Origin:
1175–1225; (v.) resp., after light 1 , of earlier delite, ME deliten < AF deliter, OF delitier < L delectāre (see delectable ); (n.) resp. (as above) of ME delit < AF, OF, deriv. of v.

Related forms:
de⋅light⋅er, noun
de⋅light⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
de⋅light⋅less, adjective

Synonyms:
1. transport, delectation. See pleasure. 3. charm, enrapture.

Antonyms:
1. distress. 2. disappointment.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Delight
de·light   (dĭ-līt')   
n.  

  1. Great pleasure; joy.

  2. Something that gives great pleasure or enjoyment.

v.   de·light·ed, de·light·ing, de·lights

v.   intr.

  1. To take great pleasure or joy: delights in taking long walks.

  2. To give great pleasure or joy: an old movie that still delights.

v.   tr.
To please greatly. See Synonyms at please.

[Middle English delit, from Old French, a pleasure, from delitier, to please, charm, from Latin dēlectāre : dē-, intensive pref.; see de- + lactāre, frequentative of lacere, to entice.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

delight 
c.1225, delit, from O.Fr. delit, from delitier "please greatly, charm," from L. delectare "to allure, delight," freq. of delicere "entice" (see delicious). Spelled delite until 16c. when it changed under infl. of light, flight, etc.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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