Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- Played or sung in an animated manner; giving lively utterance to a lilt or song.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective having a light rhythmical cadence.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Having a
lilt ; withenergy ,spirit andsprightliness ;lively andcheerful . - noun Type of lively
singing without any musical accompaniment, where thetune itself is sung. - verb Present participle of
lilt .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective characterized by a buoyant rhythm
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word lilting.
Examples
-
We happen into a traditional jam session with the legendary Mary Bergin on tin whistle (the instrument some hold responsible for making the Titanic sound track the bestselling of all time), Johnny "Ringo" McDonagh on Bodhran drum (he was a solo in Riverdance for four years and one of the groundbreakers in the musical vocabulary of the instrument) and Steve Sweeney lilting, which is a kind of mouth music along the lines of a Gaelic Bobby McFerrin.
The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com Richard Bangs 2012
-
She laughed, softly and with a kind of lilting warmth.
Salvage for the Saint Charteris, Leslie, 1907- 1983
-
I try not to overuse the word "lilting" when describing a band's music; it's one of those adjectives that really has to be earned by a certain sweet, heartfelt buoyancy in the way a song is performed.
-
When I came home, I found myself drinking in the simplest things -- the blessing of a refreshing breeze, the velvet texture of newly cut grass, a small child's lilting laughter.
-
The real star is director Ava Roy, whose masterful use of the entire island was both subtle and innovative; at times organic (the gravedigger scene was on a small mountain of rubble) and striking (Ophelia's madness was played inside a wide open hospital room threaded with white twine, empty birdcages, and lilting bird down.)
Lauren Gunderson: Wild and Whirling Words: An Audacious Hamlet on Alcatraz Lauren Gunderson 2010
-
"What happens when all flags burn together?" he wonders in Jeopardy, over lilting guitar and cheerful trumpets.
-
She placed the slimy cud behind her, picking up another shock of lazy, lilting grasses — she selected two, let the remains scuttle greenily in the wind, placed a leafy scythe to my lips.
We Stabbed and a Mighty Scarf Shot Red Ivan R. 2011
-
Then we shift into the lilting melodies of two Russian lullabies, "Little Birch Tree" and "Good Night."
Brenda Peterson: Sing, Make a Joyful Sound: How Singing Helps Us Brenda Peterson 2011
-
The real star is director Ava Roy, whose masterful use of the entire island was both subtle and innovative; at times organic (the gravedigger scene was on a small mountain of rubble) and striking (Ophelia's madness was played inside a wide open hospital room threaded with white twine, empty birdcages, and lilting bird down.)
Lauren Gunderson: Wild and Whirling Words: An Audacious Hamlet on Alcatraz Lauren Gunderson 2010
-
The real star is director Ava Roy, whose masterful use of the entire island was both subtle and innovative; at times organic (the gravedigger scene was on a small mountain of rubble) and striking (Ophelia's madness was played inside a wide open hospital room threaded with white twine, empty birdcages, and lilting bird down.)
Lauren Gunderson: Wild and Whirling Words: An Audacious Hamlet on Alcatraz Lauren Gunderson 2010
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.