ENGLISH
REFERENCE

mellow

adj.
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈmɛɫoʊ// UK //mˈɛləʊ// mel·low Dialect Informal Literary Slang

adj. relaxed, calm, and pleasant. You use this to describe a person who is easygoing or a sound that is soft and smooth.

adj. characterised by a relaxed, easygoing temperament or a soft, resonant quality of sound. Often describes the pleasant maturity of wine, cheese, or a person's character over time.


SIMPLE

He became much more mellow as he got older.

CONTEXTUAL

After a long day at the office, she liked to listen to some mellow jazz to help her unwind.

COMPLEX

The golden hour light gave the entire valley a mellow glow, softening the sharp edges of the granite cliffs and signaling the end of the trek.

Synonyms
Origin

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English melowe, melwe (“ripe, mellow; juicy; sweet”) [and other forms]; further etymology uncertain, possibly: from an attributive use of melow, melowe, melewe, mele (“meal from ground grain or legumes; flour; kernel of barley or lentils”) [and other forms], from Old English melo, melu (“meal (edible part of a grain or pulse); flour”), from Proto-Germanic melwą (“ground corn; meal; flour”), from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to crush; to grind”); or a variant of Middle English merow, merowe, meruw (“soft, tender; of a person: frail; of love: unstable, variable”) [and other forms], from Old English meru, mearu (“soft, tender; delicate, frail; callow”) [and other forms], from Proto-Germanic marwaz (“soft, mellow; brittle, delicate”), from Proto-Indo-European *mer(w)- (“to rub; to pack”). The noun and verb are both derived from the adjective. The etymology of noun sense 3 (“close friend; lover”) is unknown, but may also be derived from the adjective. Cognates * Dutch murw (“tender”) * German mürbe (“soft, tender”) * German Low German möör (“tender”) * Old Norse mör (“tender; aching”) (Icelandic meyr (“tender”)) * Saterland Frisian muur (“tender”) * West Frisian murf (“tender”)

Usage

Often follows linking verbs like 'become', 'stay', or 'feel'.

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