charm
1 [chahrm]
| 1. | a power of pleasing or attracting, as through personality or beauty: charm of manner; the charm of a mountain lake. |
| 2. | a trait or feature imparting this power. |
| 3. | charms, attractiveness. |
| 4. | a trinket to be worn on a bracelet, necklace, etc. |
| 5. | something worn or carried on one's person for its supposed magical effect; amulet. |
| 6. | any action supposed to have magical power. |
| 7. | the chanting or recitation of a magic verse or formula. |
| 8. | a verse or formula credited with magical power. |
| 9. | Physics. a quantum number assigned the value +1 for one kind of quark, −1 for its antiquark, and 0 for all other quarks. Symbol: C Compare charmed quark. |
| 10. | to delight or please greatly by beauty, attractiveness, etc.; enchant: She charmed us with her grace. |
| 11. | to act upon (someone or something) with or as with a compelling or magical force: to charm a bird from a tree. |
| 12. | to endow with or protect by supernatural powers. |
| 13. | to gain or influence through personal charm: He charmed a raise out of his boss. |
| 14. | to be fascinating or pleasing. |
| 15. | to use charms. |
| 16. | to act as a charm. |
1250–1300; ME charme < OF < L carminem, acc. of carmen song, magical formula < *canmen (by dissimilation), equiv. to can(ere) to sing + -men n. suffix

Related forms:
1. attractiveness, allurement. 4. bauble. 5. talisman. 6. enchantment, spell. 8. spell. 10. fascinate, captivate, entrance, enrapture, ravish; allure, bewitch.
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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charm (chärm) n.
v. tr.
[Middle English charme, magic spell, from Old French, from Latin carmen, incantation; see kan- in Indo-European roots.] charm'ing·ly adv., charm'less adj. Synonyms: These verbs mean to attract strongly or irresistibly: manners that charmed the old curmudgeon; delicacies that beguile even the most discerning gourmet; a performance that bewitched the audience; a novel that captivates its readers; a child who enchanted his grandparents; music that entrances its listeners; a celebrity who fascinated his interviewer. |
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Charm
Charm\, n. [F. charme, fr. L. carmen song, verse, incantation, for casmen, akin to Skr. [,c]asman, [,c]as[=a], a laudatory song, from a root signifying to praise, to sing.]1. A melody; a song. [Obs.] With charm of earliest birds. --Milton. Free liberty to chant our charms at will. --Spenser. 2. A word or combination of words sung or spoken in the practice of magic; a magical combination of words, characters, etc.; an incantation. My high charms work. --Shak. 3. That which exerts an irresistible power to please and attract; that which fascinates; any alluring quality. Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul. --Pope. The charm of beauty's powerful glance. --Milton. 4. Anything worn for its supposed efficacy to the wearer in averting ill or securing good fortune. 5. Any small decorative object worn on the person, as a seal, a key, a silver whistle, or the like. Bunches of charms are often worn at the watch chain. Syn: Syn. - Spell; incantation; conjuration; enchantment; fascination; attraction.Charm
Charm\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Charmed; p. pr. & vb. n. Charming.] [Cf. F. charmer. See Charm, n.]1. To make music upon; to tune. [Obs. & R.] Here we our slender pipes may safely charm. --Spenser. 2. To subdue, control, or summon by incantation or supernatural influence; to affect by magic. No witchcraft charm thee! --Shak. 3. To subdue or overcome by some secret power, or by that which gives pleasure; to allay; to soothe. Music the fiercest grief can charm. --Pope. 4. To attract irresistibly; to delight exceedingly; to enchant; to fascinate. They, on their mirth and dance Intent, with jocund music charm his ear. --Milton. 5. To protect with, or make invulnerable by, spells, charms, or supernatural influences; as, a charmed life. I, in my own woe charmed, Could not find death. --Shak. Syn: Syn. - To fascinate; enchant; enrapture; captivate; bewitch; allure; subdue; delight; entice; transport.Charm
Charm\, v. i. 1. To use magic arts or occult power; to make use of charms. The voice of charmers, charming never so wisely. --Ps. lviii. 5. 2. To act as, or produce the effect of, a charm; to please greatly; to be fascinating. 3. To make a musical sound. [Obs.] --Milton.Cite This Source
charm
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charm (chärm) Pronunciation Key
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Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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CHARM language
An explicitly parallel programming language based on C, for both shared and nonshared MIMD computers.
(ftp://a.cs.uiuc.edu/pub/CHARM).
Mailing list:
["The CHARM(3.2) Programming Language Manual", UIUC, Dec 1992].
(2006-04-29)
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charm
In addition to the idioms beginning with charm, also see (charm the) pants off; work like a charm.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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| CHARM Coupled HydrosphereâAtmosphere Research Model |
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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charm
a practice or expression believed to have magic power, similar to an incantation or a spell. Charms are among the earliest examples of written literature. Among the charms written in Old English are those against a dwarf and against the theft of cattle. The word is from the Old French charme and the Latin carmen, "ritual utterance," "incantation," or "song."
Learn more about charm with a free trial on Britannica.com.
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