charms

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of charm.

   A row of tiny gold charms dangled from her necklace.

   The witch muttered protective charms over the threshold.

   Note

   A plural that often means more than a count. In the sense of personal appeal, charms gathers someone's attractive qualities into one idea, as in falling for her charms. The trinket and the spell pluralize plainly: a bracelet hung with charms, charms muttered over a doorway. Watch the collective noun, though. A charm of goldfinches already names a whole flock, so several flocks would be charms of goldfinches.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of charm.

   The street performer charms the crowd with a few simple card tricks.

   His easy confidence charms clients into signing on the spot.

   Note

   The same spelling as the noun plural, and position tells them apart. Here it follows its subject and takes an object (she charms the room), while the noun sits after a determiner (her charms). Every living sense works on someone or something, from winning a person over to the older magical uses, where a spell subdues a listener or charms a house against harm. The musical sense, to make music upon, is obsolete.

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