sweet English · revision 2698

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=before 830|origins=ine-pro *sweh₂d-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /swiːt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|swete]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) [[inh|ang|swēte|t=pleasing to the senses, mind or feelings]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) Mercian swoete,^(Etymonline) from [[gem-pro|*swōtijaz]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) the source also of Old Saxon swōti, Old Frisian swēt, Dutch zoet, Old High German suozi (German süß) and Old Norse sœtr.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Outside Germanic it is cognate with Latin suāvis “pleasant”, Greek hēdús “sweet, pleasant” and Sanskrit svādú- “sweet”,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[ine-pro|*sweh₂d-|alt=*swād-|t=sweet, pleasant]].^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Latin suādēre “to advise”, properly “to make pleasant”, is from the same root.^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) The noun is from the adjective.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Old English swēte is recorded before 830,^(Barnhart 1988) and of taste, “pleasing to the sense of taste, having the taste of sugar”, about 888.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Already in Old English it was used of sounds pleasing to the ear and of persons with pleasant manners.^(Etymonline) “Pleasing to the eye, beautiful” is from the mid-14th century.^(Etymonline) The noun, “something sweet to the taste”, and a term of endearment, “beloved one”, are from about 1300.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) A sweet food or drink is from about 1400,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) a sweet dish served at the end of a meal from 1832,^(OED 1989) and a sweetmeat or candy drop from 1851, after earlier ''sweetie'' (1721).^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) In jazz, music played at a steady tempo without improvisation was sweet by 1924, as opposed to hot.^(Etymonline) The meaning “fine, good” was originally Australian, from the 1890s.^(Cresswell 2021) ''Sweetness and light'' is first used by Swift in ''The Battle of the Books'' (1704).^(Cresswell 2021) ''Sweet Fanny Adams'', “nothing at all”, recalls a girl murdered in 1867, whose name sailors gave to tinned meat.^(Cresswell 2021) Compounds include ''sweetheart'' (13th century), ''sweetbread'' (1565) and ''sweet corn'' (1646, American).^(Hoad 1986)^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * before 830 – Old English swēte.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 888 – of taste.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1300 – noun, something sweet; a beloved.^(Etymonline)

+ * mid-14th century – pleasing to the eye.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1400 – a sweet food.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1704 – ''sweetness and light''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1832 – a dessert.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1851 – a candy drop.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+ * 1890s – fine, good (Australian).^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Adjective===

+ # Having the taste of [[sugar]] or [[honey]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Pleasing to the senses: ''a sweet smell'', ''a sweet voice''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Kind, gentle and pleasant.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # Charming and attractive; cute.^(AHD)

+ # Of water or air: fresh, not salty or stale.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # ''(informal)'' Very good; excellent.^(Cresswell 2021)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''(British)'' A small piece of confectionery; a [[candy]].^(MW Collegiate)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(British)'' A [[dessert]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A dear person, used as a term of endearment.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[sweetly]]

+ * [[sweetness]]

+ * [[sweetie]]

+ * [[sweetshop]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[sweeten]]

+ * [[sweetheart]]

+ * [[suave]]

+ * [[persuade]]

+ * [[hedonism]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}