# sweet

Pronunciation: say "SWEET" US /swit/, UK /swiːt/

## Adjective

1. Having the taste of sugar, including a wine that keeps some of its sugar rather than being fully dry.
   - Simple: Tasting of sugar, as some foods and wines do.
   - _These strawberries are wonderfully sweet this time of year._
   - _He found the syrup far too sweet for his taste._
2. Very pleasing, delightful, or attractive; informally, excellent or very desirable, as in a sweet deal.
   - Simple: Very nice, pleasant, or pretty.
   - _It was a sweet evening, full of good food and easy conversation._
   - _She landed a sweet deal on her new car._
3. Kind, gentle, and thoughtful, whether in general character or in a particular act, as in it was sweet of you to call.
   - Simple: Kind, gentle, and caring, in the way someone is or in something they do.
   - _She has a sweet temperament that puts everyone at ease._
   - _Their new neighbor turned out to be remarkably sweet._
5. Having a pleasant, fragrant smell.
   - Simple: Having a nice, pleasant smell.
   - _The kitchen filled with the sweet scent of baking bread._
   - _A sweet fragrance drifted from the blossoming orchard._
6. Having a pleasant, melodious sound.
   - Simple: Pleasant and gentle to listen to.
   - _The violin produced a sweet, clear tone._
   - _His sweet tenor carried across the silent hall._
10. Romantically taken with someone; fond of or attracted to them. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: Liking someone in a romantic way.
   - _Everyone could tell he was sweet on her from the way he smiled._
   - _She's been sweet on him since their college days._
12. Not salty: of water, fresh rather than salt or brackish; of butter, unsalted.
   - Simple: Without salt, like fresh water or butter with no salt added.
   - _The settlers dug wells until they struck sweet water beneath the dunes._
   - _Where the river meets the sea, sweet water gives way to brine._
13. Fresh and unspoiled; not sour, rancid, fermented, or stale.
   - Simple: Still fresh and good, not gone bad or sour.
   - _The milk was still sweet despite sitting out for an hour._
   - _The fresh-caught fish was still sweet when it reached the market._
15. Used to add emphasis or force to a following word, quantity, or amount.
   - Simple: Used before another word or amount to make its meaning stronger.
   - _You can bet your sweet life she'll be first in line when the tickets go on sale._
   - _The plumber took his own sweet time and finally showed up three hours late._
16. In a good or happy position; doing well. *(slang, Australia)*
   - Simple: Doing well and in a good, happy situation.
   - _With the bonus in the bank, the family was sweet for the year._
   - _Once the funding cleared, the little startup was sweet._

## Noun

4. A piece of candy or other confection made of sugar or containing a lot of it. *(India, UK)*
   - Simple: A small sugary treat, such as a candy or piece of chocolate.
   - _He kept a tin of boiled sweets on the mantelpiece._
   - _Every child got a sweet at the end of the party._
9. An affectionate term for a loved one; a sweetheart.
   - Simple: A loving name you call someone you care about.
   - _She kissed her husband on the cheek and said, 'Have a good day at work, my sweet.'_
   - _Grandpa still called Grandma 'my sweet' after fifty years of marriage._
11. The basic taste that sugar produces on the tongue, as distinct from sour, salty, or bitter.
   - Simple: The taste you get from sugar, one of the basic tastes.
   - _The tongue detects sweet through receptors tuned to sugar molecules._
   - _Among the basic tastes, sweet signals a likely source of energy in food._
7. A dish eaten as the dessert course of a meal. *(UK)*
   - Simple: The dessert, or food served at the end of a meal.
   - _There was soup to start, roast lamb for the main course, and a lemon tart for sweet._
   - _There's apple crumble for sweet if anyone has room._

## Interjection

8. Used as a positive, enthusiastic response to good news or information. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: Used to show you are happy or excited about good news.
   - _Sweet, the package finally arrived this morning._
   - _They approved our proposal? Sweet._

## Adverb

14. In a pleasant or agreeable manner.
   - Simple: In a nice or pleasant way.
   - _The choir sang sweet through the long evening service._
   - _As the baby finally drifted off, her grandmother kept singing soft and sweet until the room went quiet._

## Adjective

17. Of soil: alkaline rather than acidic. *(dated, UK)*
   - Simple: Alkaline rather than acidic, especially about soil.
   - _Farmers limed the field each spring to keep the ground sweet._
   - _A sweet, well-drained loam suited crops that disliked acid._

## Verb

18. To make sweet; to sweeten in taste, smell, or feeling. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: To make something sweet or pleasant.

## Noun

19. Pleasure or sweetness, or anything that gratifies the mind or the senses. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Pleasure or delight, or something nice that you enjoy.
20. A pleasant odor or fragrance; a perfume. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: A pleasant scent or perfume.

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Free from excessive unwanted substances such as acid or sulfur.

## Origin

From Middle English swete, from Old English swēte ("sweet"), tracing back through Proto-Germanic *swōtuz to Proto-Indo-European *swéh₂dus ("sweet"). It is related to Dutch zoet, German süß, Latin suāvis, and Ancient Greek hēdús, and is a doublet of suave.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/sweet (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).