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mellifluous

 - 3 dictionary results

mel⋅lif⋅lu⋅ous

  [muh-lif-loo-uhs]
Use mellifluous in a Sentence
–adjective
1. sweetly or smoothly flowing; sweet-sounding: a mellifluous voice; mellifluous tones.
2. flowing with honey; sweetened with or as if with honey.
Origin:
1375–1425; late ME < LL mellifluus, equiv. to L melli- (s. of mel) honey + -flu(ere) to flow + -us adj. suffix (see -ous )

Related forms:
mel⋅lif⋅lu⋅ous⋅ly, adverb
mel⋅lif⋅lu⋅ous⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. melodious, musical, dulcet, harmonious.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To mellifluous
mel·lif·lu·ous   (mə-lĭf'lōō-əs)   
adj.  

  1. Flowing with sweetness or honey.

  2. Smooth and sweet: "polite and cordial, with a mellifluous, well-educated voice" (H.W. Crocker III).


[Middle English, from Late Latin mellifluus : Latin mel, mell-, honey; see melit- in Indo-European roots + Latin -fluus, flowing; see bhleu- in Indo-European roots.]
mel·lif'lu·ous·ly adv., mel·lif'lu·ous·ness n.
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

mellifluous 
1432, from L.L. mellifluus "flowing with (or as if with) honey," from L. mel (gen. mellis) "honey" + -fluus "flowing," from fluere "to flow" (see fluent).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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