mellifluous

adjective

mel·​lif·​lu·​ous me-ˈli-flə-wəs 

mə-

1

: having a smooth rich flow

a mellifluous voice

2

: filled with something (such as honey) that sweetens

mellifluous confections

mellifluously adverb

mellifluousness noun

Did you know?

Use Mellifluous to Describe Your Dinner Date

Have a bee in your bonnet to learn some mellifluous facts? Sweet—we won’t make you comb for them. Mellifluous comes from two Latin roots: the noun mel, meaning “honey,” and the verb fluere, meaning “to flow.” These linguistic components flowed smoothly together into the Late Latin word mellifluus, then continued on into the Middle English word mellyfluous, before crystallizing into the adjective we employ today. As it has for centuries, mellifluous typically and figuratively describes sound, and is often at the tip of the tongues of writers who proclaim that a voice or melody is smooth like molasses (molasses, like mellifluous, is a descendant of the Latin mel). But mellifluous can also be used to describe edibles and potables, such as wine, with a pronounced note of sweetness.

Synonyms

• euphonious
• lyric
• lyrical
• mellifluent
• mellow
• melodic
• melodious
• musical

Examples of mellifluous in a Sentence

a rich, mellifluous voice that gets her a lot of work in radio and TV commercials

Recent Examples on the Web

How, truly, has Sarah Lancashire’s mellifluous and peppery performance in Julia not been nominated? —Joe Reid, Vulture, 25 May 2024

Especially unique is the sewing-machine-smooth cadence of an early 4.0-liter Lamborghini V-12, breathing through a sextet of Weber 40s and expressing its mellifluous voice through a steel Ansa exhaust system. —Robert Ross, Robb Report, 15 May 2024

Then there's Keith David, who would later join the show's cast in season 6 but made his Community debut here with mellifluous narration. —Chancellor Agard, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2024

Her mellifluous sound, spanning two octaves, is part Snow White communing with the birds, part haunted theremin. —Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mellyfluous, from Late Latin mellifluus, from Latin mell-, mel honey + fluere to flow; akin to Goth milith honey, Greek melit-, meli

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

mellifluous

adjective

mel·​lif·​lu·​ous me-ˈlif-lə-wəs 

mə-

: smoothly flowing

mellifluous speech

mellifluously adverb

mellifluousness noun