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sweet

See also: Sweet

Contents

EnglishEdit

 
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EtymologyEdit

From Middle English sweete, swete, from Old English swēte (“sweet”), from Proto-Germanic *swōtuz (“sweet”), from Proto-Indo-European *swéh₂dus (“sweet”). Cognate with Scots sweit, North Frisian sweete, West Frisian swiet, Low German sööt, Dutch zoet, German süß, Danish sød, Swedish söt,Norwegian søt, Latin suāvis (“sweet”).

PronunciationEdit

AdjectiveEdit

sweet (comparative sweeter, superlative sweetest)

  1. Having a pleasant taste, especially one relating to the basic taste sensation induced by sugar.
    a sweet apple
  2. Having a taste of sugar.
  3. Containing a sweetening ingredient.
  4. (wine) Retaining a portion of sugar.
    Sweet wines are better dessert wines.
  5. Not having a salty taste.
    sweet butter
  6. Having a pleasant smell.
    a sweet scent
    • Longfellow
      The breath of these flowers is sweet to me.
  7. Not decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale.
    sweet milk
  8. Having a pleasant sound.
    a sweet tune
    • Nathaniel Hawthorne
      a voice sweet, tremulous, but powerful
  9. Having a pleasing disposition.
    a sweet child
  10. Having a helpful disposition.
    It was sweet of him to help out.
  11. (mineralogy) Free from excessive unwanted substances like acid or sulphur.
    sweet soil
    sweet crude oil
  12. (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[1]:
      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.
  13. (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.
  14. (obsolete) Fresh; not salt or brackish.
    sweet water
    • Francis Bacon, Natural History.
      The white of an egg, or blood mingled with salt water, gathers the saltness and maketh the water sweeter; this may be by adhesion.
    • 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.
  15. 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.

SynonymsEdit

AntonymsEdit

Derived termsEdit

Terms derived from sweet

TranslationsEdit

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

Usage notesEdit

  • Also used as a positive response to good news or information: They're making a sequel? Ah, sweet!

AdverbEdit

sweet (comparative more sweet, superlative most sweet)

  1. In a sweet manner.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)

SynonymsEdit

TranslationsEdit

NounEdit

sweet (countable and uncountable, plural sweets)

  1. (uncountable) The basic taste sensation induced by sugar.
  2. (countable, Britain) A confection made from sugar, or high in sugar content; a candy.
  3. (countable, Britain) A food eaten for dessert.
    Can we see the sweet menu, please?
  4. sweetheart; darling.
    • Ben Jonson
      Wherefore frowns my sweet?
  5. (obsolete) That which is sweet or pleasant in odour; a perfume.
    • Milton
      a wilderness of sweets
  6. (obsolete) Sweetness, delight; something pleasant to the mind or senses.
    • 1613, John Marston, William Barksted, The Insatiate Countess, III.2:
      Fear's fire to fervency, which makes love's sweet prove nectar.

SynonymsEdit

Derived termsEdit

TranslationsEdit

basic taste sensation induced by sugar — see sweetness
food eaten for dessert — see dessert
sweetheart — see sweetheart
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

AnagramsEdit

Middle DutchEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Old Dutch *swēt, from Proto-Germanic *swait-.

NounEdit

swêet n

  1. sweat, perspiration

InflectionEdit

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Alternative formsEdit

Derived termsEdit

DescendantsEdit

Further readingEdit

  • “sweet”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
  • “sweet”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, 1929
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