Wiktionary

sweet

See also: Sweet

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English swete, from Old English swēte (“sweet”), from Proto-West Germanic *swōtī, from Proto-Germanic *swōtuz (“sweet”), from Proto-Indo-European *swéh₂dus (“sweet”).

Cognate and synonymous with Scots sweit (“sweet”), North Frisian sweete (“sweet”), Saterland Frisian swäit (“sweet”), West Frisian swiet (“sweet”), Dutch zoet (“sweet”), German Low German sööt (“sweet”), German süß (“sweet”), Danish sød (“sweet”), Swedish söt (“sweet”), Norwegian søt (“sweet”), Icelandic sætur (“sweet”), Latin suāvis, Sanskrit स्वादु (svādú), Ancient Greek ἡδύς (hēdús). Doublet of suave.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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sweet (comparative sweeter, superlative sweetest)

  1. Tasting of sugars.
    a sweet apple
    • 2018 May 16, Adam Rogers, “The Fundamental Nihilism of Yanny vs. Laurel”, in Wired:
      A few types of molecules get sensed by receptors on the tongue. Protons coming off of acids ping receptors for "sour." Sugars get received as "sweet." Bitter, salty, and the proteinaceous flavor umami all set off their own neural cascades.
  2. (wine) Retaining a portion of sugar.
    Sweet wines are better dessert wines.
  3. Not of a salty taste.
    sweet butter
  4. Of a pleasant smell.
    a sweet scent
    • 1838 October, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “The Reaper and the Flowers”, in Voices of the Night, Cambridge, Mass.: […] John Owen, published 1839, →OCLC, page 8:
      Though the breath of these flowers is sweet to me, / I will give them all back again.
  5. Not decaying, fermented, rancid, sour, spoiled, or stale.
    sweet milk
  6. Of a pleasant sound.
    a sweet tune
  7. Of a pleasing disposition.
    a sweet child
    You're so sweet!
    • 2017 April 13, Mitchy Collins, Samantha Derosa, Christian Medice, “Broken”, in Finding It Hard to Smile‎[1], performed by Lovelytheband:
      There's something tragic, but almost pure / Think I could love you, but I'm not sure / There's something wholesome, there's something sweet / Tucked in your eyes that I'd love to meet
  8. Of a helpful disposition.
    It was sweet of him to help out.
  9. (mineralogy) Free from excessive unwanted substances like acid or sulphur.
    sweet gas
    sweet soil
    sweet crude oil
  10. (informal) Very pleasing; agreeable.
    The new Lexus was a sweet birthday gift.
    • 1932, Delos W. Lovelace, King Kong, published 1965, page 1:
      Her crew knew that deep in her heart beat engines fit and able to push her blunt old nose ahead at a sweet fourteen knots, come Hell or high water.
    • 14 November 2014, Steven Haliday, Scotland 1-0 Republic of Ireland: Maloney the hero
      GORDON Strachan enjoyed the sweetest of his 16 matches in charge of Scotland so far as his team enhanced their prospects of Euro 2016 qualification with a crucial and deserved victory over Republic of Ireland.
  11. (Australia, slang) Doing well; in a good or happy position.
    • 2012, John Hoskison, Inside: One Man's Experience of Prison:
      "Visit in two days though," said Tommo. "Hang in there mate, got a joey coming, we'll be sweet then."
  12. (informal, followed by on) Romantically fixated; enamored with; fond of.
    The attraction was mutual and instant; they were sweet on one another from first sight.
  13. Fresh; not salt or brackish.
    sweet water
    • 1627, Francis Bacon, “Sylva Sylvarum: or A Natural History”, in The Works of Francis Bacon, published 1826, page 66:
      The white of an egg, or blood mingled with salt water, doth gather the saltness and maketh the water sweeter; this may be by adhesion.
    • 1821, Robert Thomas, The modern practice of physic, page 713:
      Nothing has been found so effectual for preserving water sweet at sea, during long voyages, as charring the insides of the casks well before they are filled.
  14. (of soil, UK, dated) Alkaline.
  16. Pleasing to the eye; beautiful; mild and attractive; fair.
    a sweet face
    a sweet colour or complexion
  17. An intensifier.
    • 2014, Rexanne Becnel, Leaving L.A., page 12:
      For someone who hadn't seen her only sister in over twenty years, Alice sure took her sweet time.

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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See sweet/translations § Adjective.

See also

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Basic tastes in English (layout · text)
           
sweet sour salty bitter spicy savory

Interjection

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sweet

  1. Used as a positive response to good news or information.
    They're making a sequel? Ah, sweet!

Adverb

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sweet (comparative more sweet, superlative most sweet)

  1. In a pleasant manner.

Synonyms

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Translations

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Noun

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sweet (countable and uncountable, plural sweets)

  1. (uncountable) The basic taste sensation induced by sugar.
  2. (countable, especially UK) A confection made from sugar, or high in sugar content; a candy.
  3. (countable, especially UK) A food eaten for dessert.
    Can we see the sweet menu, please?
  4. Synonym of sweetheart, a term of affection.
    Good evening, my sweet.
  5. (obsolete) That which is sweet or pleasant in odour; a perfume.
    • 1667, John Milton, “Book V”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
      a wilderness of sweets
  6. (obsolete) Sweetness, delight; something pleasant to the mind or senses.
    • 1613, John Marston, William Barksted, The Insatiate Countess, III.2:
      Fear's fire to fervency, which makes love's sweet prove nectar.

Synonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Verb

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sweet (third-person singular simple present sweets, present participle sweeting, simple past and past participle sweeted)

  1. (archaic or poetic) To sweeten.
    • 1825, John Breckinridge, C.R. Harrison, Western Luminary ... - Volume 1, page 318:
      In size and shape it resembles the heart of a calf, and the interior substance is similar to thick cream, sweeted with fine sugar.
    • 1890, The Cincinnati Lancet-clinic - Volume 63, page 331:
      It might also be given in the form of a mixture — the drug being insoluble in a watery menstruum — suspended by the aid of mucilage and sweeted by any of the various flavoring syrups.
    • 1997, Morag Styles, From the Garden to the Street, →ISBN:
      Bring me now where the warm wind blows, where the grasses sigh, where the sweet-tongued blossom flowers; where the shower, fan soft like a fishermans net thrown through the sweeted air.
    • 2012, Keith Ringkamp, PATIENCE WORTH: A Balm for Every Ill, →ISBN, page 34:
      A sour maketh sweets two-fold sweeted.

Derived terms

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See also

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Anagrams

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Afrikaans

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Dutch zweet, from Middle Dutch sweet, from Old Dutch *sweit, *swēt, from Proto-Germanic *swait-, from Proto-Indo-European *sweyd-.

Noun

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sweet (uncountable)

  1. sweat
    Daar was baie sweet op haar voorhoof.
    There was a lot of sweat on her forehead.

Etymology 2

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From Dutch zweten, from Middle Dutch swêten.

Verb

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sweet (present sweet, present participle swetende, past participle gesweet)

  1. to sweat

Chinese

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From English sweet.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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sweet

  1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) romantic

Derived terms

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Middle Dutch

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Etymology

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From Old Dutch *swēt, from Proto-Germanic *swait-.

Noun

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swêet n

  1. sweat, perspiration

Inflection

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This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Alternative forms

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Dutch: zweet
  • Limburgish: zweit

Further reading

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Yola

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Etymology

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From Middle English swete, from Old English swēte, from Proto-West Germanic *swōtī.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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sweet

  1. sweet
    • 1867, “THE WEDDEEN O BALLYMORE”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 2, page 94:
      Hea marreet dear Phielim to his sweet Jauane.
      He married dear Phelim to his sweet Joan.

Derived terms

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References

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  • Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 94
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