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Synonyms

delight

American  
[dih-lahyt] / dɪˈlaɪt /

noun

  1. a high degree of pleasure or enjoyment; joy; rapture.

    She takes great delight in her job.
    Synonyms:
    delectation, transport
    Antonyms:
    distress

  2. something that gives great pleasure.

    The dance was a delight to see.
    Antonyms:
    disappointment

verb (used with object)

  1. to give great pleasure, satisfaction, or enjoyment to; please highly.

    The show delighted everyone.
    Synonyms:
    enrapture, charm

verb (used without object)

  1. to have great pleasure; take pleasure (followed by in or an infinitive).

    She delights in going for long walks in the country.
delight British  
/ dɪˈlaɪt /

verb

  1. (tr) to please greatly

  2. to take great pleasure (in)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. extreme pleasure or satisfaction; joy

  2. something that causes this

    music was always his delight
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See pleasure.

Other Word Forms

  • delighter noun
  • delightingly adverb
  • delightless adjective
  • self-delight noun
  • undelighting adjective

Etymology

Origin of delight

First recorded in 1175–1225; (verb) respelling, after light 1, of earlier delite, Middle English deliten, from Anglo-French deliter, Old French delitier, from Latin delectāre ( delectable ); (noun) respelling (as above) of Middle English delit, from Anglo-French, Old French, derivative of the verb

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She pulls it out and squeals with delight.

From Literature

To his delight, the foggy glass had done well to cover his eye hollow.

From Literature

There are few things Americans agree on these days, but one is a shared delight in the anguishes of the Durham, N.C., basketball behemoth.

From The Wall Street Journal

The era when delighting the public and media and driving endless free publicity for the AI revolution is over.

From The Wall Street Journal

“They Will Kill You” feels like helping my two-year-old niece put together a fairly simple, 12-piece puzzle, and watching her exclaim with delight before asking if we can assemble it again.

From Salon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.