charm
- 01 B1 Intermediate
n.the power or quality of pleasing or attracting people.
n.the power or quality of delighting, attracting, or fascinating others through personality or appearance.
Simple“The salesman used all his charm to convince the couple to buy the expensive car.”
In context“Despite his lack of formal experience, his natural charm and ability to put people at ease made him an ideal candidate for the role.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a small ornament worn on a chain or a bracelet.
n.a small decorative trinket worn on a bracelet or necklace, often symbolising a memory or providing luck.
Simple“She added a tiny silver heart charm to her bracelet to remember her trip to Paris.”
In context“The heirloom bracelet was heavy with gold charms, each representing a significant milestone in her grandmother's long life.”
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.an object or a set of words that people believe has magic powers.
n.an object, act, or incantation believed to possess occult or supernatural power, typically to bring good luck or protection.
Simple“The old stories tell of a magic charm that could turn lead into gold.”
In context“The villagers carried small pouches of dried herbs as a charm against the illness they believed was caused by mountain spirits.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
n.a technical way to measure how the price of a financial contract changes over time.
n.a second-order derivative of an option's value, measuring the rate of change of delta with respect to the passage of time.
Simple“The trader looked at the charm to see how his position would change as the weekend approached.”
In context“Institutional traders must monitor charm closely, as the time decay of delta can significantly alter a portfolio's hedge ratio over a non-trading period.”
UsageUsed specifically in the context of 'Greeks' in options trading.
Synonymsdelta decay - 05 C2 Proficiency
n.a special property of some very small particles in science.
n.a quantum number representing the difference between the number of charm quarks and charm antiquarks in a particle.
Simple“The physicist explained how the charm of a particle is conserved in certain reactions.”
In context“The discovery of the J/psi meson provided the first experimental evidence for the existence of the charm quark.”
- 06 B1 Intermediate
v.to please someone very much or to use your personality to get what you want.
v.to delight or fascinate someone; to use charisma to influence or persuade.
Simple“He managed to charm the guards into letting him enter the building without an ID.”
In context“The diplomat was known for his ability to charm even the most hostile negotiators into considering a compromise.”
- 07 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to use magic to control or protect someone or something.
v.to influence or subdue a person or animal as if by magic or incantation.
Simple“In the fairy tale, the witch tried to charm the prince so he would forget his home.”
In context“The snake charmer sat on the rug, appearing to charm the cobra with the rhythmic movements of his flute.”
Synonymsbewitchentrance
“In Greek mythology, Orpheus played such beautiful music that he could charm wild animals, move rocks and even influence the gods.”
“One of the great charms of this performer is his impishness, a delight in gambolling one step ahead of his audience.”
From Middle English charme, from Old French charme (“chant, magic spell”), from Latin carmen (“song, incantation”).
Synchronically a variant of chirm, but reflects Middle English charme (or unattested charm), from Old English ċearm (“cry, alarm”), from Proto-West Germanic karm, masculine variant of karmi f, from Proto-Germanic karmiz, *karm(j)az (“cry, lament, calling sound”). Near-doublet of chirm, which is from the feminine counterpart.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.