darling
pronunciation
How to pronounce darling in British English:
UK [ˈdɑːlɪŋ]
How to pronounce darling in American English:
US [ˈdɑːrlɪŋ]
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- Noun:
- a special loved one
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- Adjective:
- dearly loved
Word Origin
- darling (n.)
- Old English deorling "darling, favorite minion," double diminutive of deor "dear" (see dear (adj.)). The vowel shift from -e- to -a- (16c.) is usual for -er- followed by a consonant. "It is better to be An olde mans derlyng, than a yong mans werlyng" (1562).
Example
- 1. This made him something of a church darling .
- 2. Don 't take it to heart , my darling .
- 3. Darling , do you ever think about your mother ?
- 4. Because I called her my little ginge , my ginger darling - on a good day .
- 5. In the past few weeks alone I 've had one man tell me that if his " darling , sweetheart , good girl " ex-girlfriend managed to break his heart , how could he ever trust another woman again ?