Mellifluous
What it means
Pleasantly smooth, flowing, and musical to hear.
Reach for it when praising a voice, phrase, or sequence of sounds with rich fluidity
Her mellifluous reading gave each line room to settle.
Words to choose between 9
| everyday | |
|---|---|
| warm | |
| professional | |
| formal | |
| literary |
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everyday
Fits when varied pitch and pleasing rhythm are enough
Careful Musical can refer to skill or structure without describing smooth sound.
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warm
Fits when a sound has a pleasing musical quality
Careful Melodious fits tunes and voices broadly but says less about smooth flow.
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warm
Fits when the calming effect on listeners matters most
Careful Soothing predicts an effect and may fit a plain voice that is not rich or flowing.
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professional
smooth-toned
Fits when plain description of vocal texture is preferable
Careful The phrase is less elegant and does not capture mellifluous rhythm.
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formal
Fits when a sequence of sounds is pleasing as sound
Careful Euphonious is technical and can apply to words without warmth or flowing delivery.
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literary
Suits sweet, soothing sound in deliberately elevated prose
Careful Dulcet can sound archaic or ironic and is rarely natural in everyday praise.
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literary
Suits a sweet, persuasive voice
Careful Honeyed can imply calculated flattery or insincerity.
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literary
liquid
Fits when notes seem to flow seamlessly into one another
Careful Liquid is highly figurative and can be obscure outside music criticism.
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literary
silken
Fits when smooth texture is used metaphorically for a voice
Careful Silken can sound sensual or ornamental and does not imply melody.
Opposites 3
- grating
- harsh
- cacophonous
Common phrases 3
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mellifluous voice
The actor's mellifluous voice carried easily through the small theater.
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mellifluous tones
Mellifluous tones softened the formal opening of the speech.
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mellifluous prose
The essay's mellifluous prose never obscures its argument.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Dvortygirl, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 Updated