glee

¹

[ glee ]

noun

1. open delight or pleasure; exultant joy; exultation.

   Synonyms: gaiety, joviality, mirth, hilarity, jollity, merriment

2. an unaccompanied part song for three or more voices, popular especially in the 18th century.

glee

²

[ glee ]

verb (used without object)

1. to squint or look with one eye.

noun

1. a squint.
2. an imperfect eye, especially one with a cast.

glee

/ ɡliː /

noun

1. great merriment or delight, often caused by someone else's misfortune
2. a type of song originating in 18th-century England, sung by three or more unaccompanied voices Compare madrigal

Word History and Origins

Origin of glee¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English glēo; cognate with Old Norse glȳ; akin to glow

Origin of glee²

1250–1300; Middle English glien, gleen; perhaps < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse gljā to shine

Word History and Origins

Origin of glee¹

Old English gléo; related to Old Norse glӯ

Synonym Study

See mirth.

Example Sentences

He has rolled a giant grenade into the middle of the nation’s capital and watched with mischievous glee to see who runs away and who throws themselves on it.

From Salon

And on Sunday afternoon, instead of receiving the good news that Johnson and Co. might have expected, the luck of the draw left Sparks representative Rickea Jackson gasping in disbelief instead of cheering in glee.

From Los Angeles Times

James hit back-to-back threes in the fourth quarter — punctuating the second with his signature “silencer” celebration — as he stomped his feet in glee.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2023, he said with unbridled glee on the "Benny Show" that mass deportations and "putting kids in cages" would be "glorious."

From Salon

“I remember on ‘The Postman’ we hit a record for junkets,” she says, leaning forward with glee.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• delight
• elation
• exhilaration
• exuberance
• joy
• pleasure
• verve