lilt

American  

[lilt] / lɪlt /

noun

1. rhythmic swing or cadence.

2. a lilting song or tune.

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verb (used with or without object)

1. to sing or play in a light, tripping, or rhythmic manner.

lilt British  

/ lɪlt /

noun

1. (in music) a jaunty rhythm

2. a buoyant motion

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verb

1. (of a melody) to have a lilt

2. to move in a buoyant manner

Other Word Forms

• lilting adjective
• liltingly adverb
• liltingness noun

Etymology

Origin of lilt

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English verb lilte, lulte “to sound an alarm; lift up (one's voice)”; perhaps akin to Dutch, Low German lul “pipe,” lullen “to lull,” Norwegian lilla “to sing,” of imitative origin

Example Sentences

Kirkwood, who is from Morar in Scotland, confirmed she had been told many times that, with her "Highland lilt", she had "sent babies to sleep"

From BBC

“It has been a challenge going from the scandal to relationship to miscarriage to arrest to being pregnant again,” she says as a sentimental melody lilts in the background.

From Salon

Returning to the Metropolitan Opera this month, the Italian classic uses the lilting three-beat form as a unifying element in its tragic drama of a woman’s struggle with Parisian polite society.

From The Wall Street Journal

Amy asks her and somehow Wilson delivers that line with a lilt that keeps it from sounding corny.

From Los Angeles Times

Australian is also uniquely incompatible with the American lilt, she said.

From Barron's