Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Sweet
Sweet
,Adj.
[
Com
par.
Sweeter
; sup
erl.
Sweetest
.] 1.
Having an agreeable taste or flavor such as that of sugar; saccharine; – opposed to sour and bitter;
as, a
sweet
beverage; sweet
fruits; sweet
oranges.2.
Pleasing to the smell; fragrant; redolent; balmy;
as, a
sweet
rose; sweet
odor; sweet
incense.The breath of these flowers is
sweet
to me. Longfellow.
3.
Pleasing to the ear; soft; melodious; harmonious;
as, the
sweet
notes of a flute or an organ; sweet
music; a sweet
voice; a sweet
singer.To make his English
sweet
upon his tongue. Chaucer.
A voice
sweet
, tremulous, but powerful. Hawthorne.
4.
Pleasing to the eye; beautiful; mild and attractive; fair;
as, a
sweet
face; a sweet
color or complexion.Sweet
interchangeOf hill and valley, rivers, woods, and plains.
Milton.
5.
Fresh; not salt or brackish;
as,
. sweet
waterBacon.
6.
Not changed from a sound or wholesome state. Specifically:
(a)
Not sour; as,
. sweet
milk or bread(b)
Not state; not putrescent or putrid; not rancid; as,
. sweet
butter; sweet
meat or fish7.
Plaesing to the mind; mild; gentle; calm; amiable; winning; presuasive;
as,
. sweet
mannersCanst thou bind the
sweet
influence of Pleiades? Job xxxviii. 31.
Mildness and
sweet
reasonableness is the one established rule of Christian working. M. Arnold.
☞ Sweet is often used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, sweet-blossomed, sweet-featured, sweet-smelling, sweet-tempered, sweet-toned, etc.
Sweet alyssum
. (Bot.)
See
– Alyssum
. Sweet apple
. (Bot.)
(a)
Any apple of sweet flavor.
(b)
See
– Sweet-sop
. Sweet bay
. (Bot.)
(a)
The laurel (
Laurus nobilis
). (b)
Swamp sassafras.
– Sweet calabash
(Bot.)
, a plant of the genus
– Passiflora
(Passiflora maliformis
) growing in the West Indies, and producing a roundish, edible fruit, the size of an apple. Sweet cicely
. (Bot.)
(a)
Either of the North American plants of the umbelliferous genus
Osmorrhiza
having aromatic roots and seeds, and white flowers. Gray.
(b)
A plant of the genus
– Myrrhis
(Myrrhis odorata
) growing in England. Sweet calamus
, or Sweet cane
(Bot.)
Same as
– Sweet flag
, below. Sweet Cistus
(Bot.)
, an evergreen shrub (
– Cistus Ladanum
) from which the gum ladanum is obtained. Sweet clover
. (Bot.)
See
– Melilot
. Sweet coltsfoot
(Bot.)
, a kind of butterbur (
– Petasites sagittata
) found in Western North America. Sweet corn
(Bot.)
, a variety of the maize of a sweet taste. See the Note under
– Corn
. Sweet fern
(Bot.)
, a small North American shrub (
– Comptonia asplenifolia
syn. Myrica asplenifolia
) having sweet-scented or aromatic leaves resembling fern leaves. Sweet flag
(Bot.)
, an endogenous plant (
– Acorus Calamus
) having long flaglike leaves and a rootstock of a pungent aromatic taste. It is found in wet places in Europe and America. See Calamus
, 2. Sweet gale
(Bot.)
, a shrub (
– Myrica Gale
) having bitter fragrant leaves; – also called sweet willow
, and Dutch myrtle
. See 5th Gale
. Sweet grass
(Bot.)
, holy, or Seneca, grass.
– Sweet gum
(Bot.)
, an American tree (
– Liquidambar styraciflua
). See Liquidambar
. Sweet herbs
, fragrant herbs cultivated for culinary purposes.
– Sweet John
(Bot.)
, a variety of the sweet William.
– Sweet leaf
(Bot.)
, horse sugar. See under
– Horse
. Sweet marjoram
. (Bot.)
See
– Marjoram
. Sweet marten
(Zool.)
, the pine marten.
– Sweet maudlin
(Bot.)
, a composite plant (
– Achillea Ageratum
) allied to milfoil. Sweet oil
, olive oil.
– Sweet pea
. (Bot.)
See under
– Pea
. Sweet potato
. (Bot.)
See under
– Potato
. Sweet rush
(Bot.)
, sweet flag.
– Sweet spirits of niter
(Med. Chem.)
See
– Spirit of nitrous ether
, under Spirit
. Sweet sultan
(Bot.)
, an annual composite plant (
– Centaurea moschata
), also, the yellow-flowered (Centaurea odorata
); – called also sultan flower
. Sweet tooth
, an especial fondness for sweet things or for sweetmeats.
[Colloq.]
– Sweet William
. (a)
(Bot.)
A species of pink (
Dianthus barbatus
) of many varieties. (b)
(Zool.)
The willow warbler.
(c)
(Zool.)
The European goldfinch; – called also
sweet Billy
. [Prov. Eng.]
– Sweet willow
(Bot.)
, sweet gale.
– Sweet wine
. See
– Dry wine
, under Dry
. To be sweet on
, to have a particular fondness for, or special interest in, as a young man for a young woman.
[Colloq.]
Thackeray.
Syn. – Sugary; saccharine; dulcet; luscious.
Sweet
,Noun.
1.
That which is sweet to the taste; – used chiefly in the plural.
Specifically: (a)
Confectionery, sweetmeats, preserves, etc.
(b)
Home-made wines, cordials, metheglin, etc.
2.
That which is sweet or pleasant in odor; a perfume.
“A wilderness of sweets.” Milton.
3.
That which is pleasing or grateful to the mind;
as, the
. sweets
of domestic lifeA little bitter mingled in our cup leaves no relish of the
sweet
. Locke.
4.
One who is dear to another; a darling; – a term of endearment.
“Wherefore frowns my sweet?” B. Jonson.
Sweet
,adv.
Sweetly.
Shak.
Sweet
,Verb.
T.
To sweeten.
[Obs.]
Udall.
Webster 1828 Edition
Sweet
SWEET
,Adj.
1.
Agreeable or grateful to the taste; as, sugar or honey is sweet.2.
Pleasing to the smell; fragrant; as a sweet rose; sweet odor; sweet incense. Ex.26.3.
Pleasing to the ear; soft; melodious; harmonious; as the sweet notes of a flute or an organ; sweet music; a sweet voice.4.
Pleasing to the eye; beautiful; as a sweet face; a sweet color or complexion; a sweet form.5.
Fresh; not salt; as sweet water.6.
Not sour; as sweet fruits; sweet oranges.7.
Mild; soft; gentle. Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades?
Job 38.
8.
Mild; soft; kind; obliging; as sweet manners.9.
Grateful; pleasing. Sweet interchange of hill and valley.
10. Making soft or excellent music; as a sweet singer.
11. Not stale; as sweet butter. The bread is sweet.
12. Not turned; not sour; as sweet milk.
13. Not putrescent or putrid; as, the meat is sweet.
SWEET
,Noun.
A little bitter mingled in our cup, leaves no relish of the sweet.
1.
A sweet substance; particularly, any vegetable juice which is added to wines to improve them.2.
A perfume.3.
A word of endearment.4.
Cane juice, melasses,or other sweet vegetable substance.Definition 2024
Sweet
sweet
sweet
See also: Sweet
English
Adjective
sweet (comparative sweeter, superlative sweetest)
- Having a pleasant taste, especially one relating to the basic taste sensation induced by sugar.
- a sweet apple
- Having a taste of sugar.
- Containing a sweetening ingredient.
- (wine) Retaining a portion of sugar.
- Sweet wines are better dessert wines.
- Not having a salty taste.
- sweet butter
- 1821, Robert Thomas, The modern practice of physic
- Nothing has been found so effectual for preserving water sweet at sea, during long voyages, as charring the insides of the casks well before they are filled.
- Having a pleasant smell.
- a sweet scent
- Longfellow
- The breath of these flowers is sweet to me.
- Not decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale.
- sweet milk
- Having a pleasant sound.
- a sweet tune
- Nathaniel Hawthorne
- a voice sweet, tremulous, but powerful
- Having a pleasing disposition.
- a sweet child
- Having a helpful disposition.
- It was sweet of him to help out.
- (mineralogy) Free from excessive unwanted substances like acid or sulphur.
- sweet soil
- sweet crude oil
- (informal) Very pleasing; agreeable.
- The new Lexus was a sweet birthday gift.
- 2014 November 14, Stephen Halliday, “Scotland 1-0 Republic of Ireland: Maloney the hero”, in The Scotsman:
- GORDON Strachan enjoyed the sweetest of his 16 matches in charge of Scotland so far as his team enhanced their prospects of Euro 2016 qualification with a crucial and deserved victory over Republic of Ireland.
- (informal, followed by on) Romantically fixated, enamored (followed by with), fond (followed by of).
- The attraction was mutual and instant; they were sweet on one another from first sight.
- (obsolete) Fresh; not salt or brackish.
- sweet water
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)
- Pleasing to the eye; beautiful; mild and attractive; fair.
- a sweet face; a sweet colour or complexion
- Milton
- Sweet interchange / Of hill and valley, rivers, woods, and plains.
Synonyms
- (having a taste of sugar): saccharine, sugary
- (containing a sweetening ingredient): sugared, sweetened
- (not having a salty taste): fresh, unsalty
- (having a pleasant smell): fragrant, odoriferous, odorous, perfumed, scented, sweet-scented, sweet-smelling
- (not decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale): fresh, unfermented, wholesome
- (having a pleasant sound): dulcet, honeyed, mellifluous, mellisonant
- (having a pleasing disposition): cute, lovable, pleasant
- (having a helpful disposition): kind, gracious, helpful, sensitive, thoughtful
- ((informal) very pleasing): rad, awesome, wicked
Antonyms
- (having a pleasant taste): bitter, sour, salty
- (containing a sweetening ingredient): nonsweet, sugarless, unsugared, unsweetened, unsweet
- (of wines: retaining a portion of natural sugar): dry
- (not decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale): decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, stale
- (not having a salty taste): salty, savoury
- (free from excessive unwanted substances): sour
- ((informal) very pleasing): lame, uncool
Derived terms
Terms derived from sweet
Translations
having a pleasant taste
|
|
having a taste of sugar
|
|
containing a sweetening ingredient
|
|
of a wine: retaining a portion of sugar
|
not having a salty taste
|
|
having a pleasant smell
|
|
not decaying, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale
having a pleasant sound
|
|
having a pleasing disposition
|
|
having a helpful disposition
|
|
free from excessive unwanted substances
colloquial, very good
Usage notes
- Also used as a positive response to good news or information: They're making a sequel? Ah, sweet!
Adverb
sweet (comparative more sweet, superlative most sweet)
- In a sweet manner.
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)
Synonyms
- (in a sweet manner): sweetly
Translations
in a sweet manner
Noun
sweet (countable and uncountable, plural sweets)
- (uncountable) The basic taste sensation induced by sugar.
- (countable, Britain) A confection made from sugar, or high in sugar content; a candy.
- (countable, Britain) A food eaten for dessert.
- Can we see the sweet menu, please?
- sweetheart; darling.
- Ben Jonson
- Wherefore frowns my sweet?
- Ben Jonson
- (obsolete) That which is sweet or pleasant in odour; a perfume.
- Milton
- a wilderness of sweets
- Milton
- (obsolete) That which is pleasing or welcome to the mind.
- the sweets of domestic life
Synonyms
- (sweet taste sensation): See sweetness
- (food that is high in sugar content): bonbon, candy (US), confection, confectionery, lolly (Australia)
- (food eaten for dessert): See dessert
Derived terms
Translations
basic taste sensation induced by sugar — see sweetness
sugary confection
|
|
food eaten for dessert — see dessert
sweetheart — see sweetheart
Statistics
Most common English words before 1923: wrote · chief · company · #605: sweet · duty · heavy · single