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Definition of darling
1 : a dearly loved person
2 : favorite a director who is the darling of the critics
From the M-W Editors
darling was our Word of the Day on 01/20/2012. Hear the podcast!
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Examples of darling in a Sentence
She was mother's little darling.
for a while that candidate was the darling of the news media and could do no wrong
Recent Examples of darling from the Web
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The Astros rid themselves of several stat darlings who gave too many empty at-bats.
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Further complicating the picture: The Democrat who lost by the narrowest margin did so in a largely rural district, but could hardly be described as a progressive darling.
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Drafts: The Chiefs never seem to be darlings of national post-draft analysis, but the first four drafts under Dorsey and Reid produced four Pro Bowlers: Marcus Peters, Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill and D.J. Alexander.
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And after working on a film treatment for the character for over a decade, director and critical darling Edgar Wright was pushed off Ant-Man in 2014 and swiftly replaced by Peyton Reed.
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Not long ago, Brazil was the darling of emerging markets, with a booming economy and growing middle class.
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State Sen. José Javier Rodríguez of Miami, a party darling, is considered an early front-runner.
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The former Wall Street investment darling pleaded guilty to fraud in 2009 and is serving a 150-year sentence for bilking investors out of as much as $17.5 billion.
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Silicon valley darlings such as Google, Uber and Tesla as well as Ford and other traditional car manufacturers have invested heavily in developing autonomous vehicles.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'darling'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
The origins of "darling" can be found in the very heart of the English language; its earliest known uses can be traced back to Old English writings from the 9th century. Old English "deorling" was formed by attaching the Old English suffix -ling ("one associated with or marked by a specified quality") with the adjective "dēore," the ancestor of our adjective "dear" ("regarded very affectionately or fondly," "highly valued or esteemed," "beloved"). English speakers appear to have developed a fondness for "darling" and have held on to it for over a thousand years now. And though its spelling has changed over time - including variations such as "dyrling," "derlinge," and "dearling" - "darling" has maintained its original sense of "one dearly loved."
Origin and Etymology of darling
Middle English derling, from Old English dēorling, from dēore dear
darling
Definition of darling
darlingness
nounExamples of darling in a Sentence
This is my darling daughter, Sara.
That dress is just darling.
First Known Use of darling
15th century
Darling
playDefinition of Darling
river 1702 miles (2738 kilometers) long in southeastern Australia in Queensland and New South Wales flowing southwest into the Murray River
DARLING Defined for English Language Learners
darling
playDefinition of darling for English Language Learners
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: a person you love very much
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: a kind and helpful person
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: someone who is liked very much by a person or group
darling
Definition of darling for English Language Learners
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: greatly loved
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: very pleasing or attractive
DARLING Defined for Kids
Learn More about darling
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See words that rhyme with darling Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for darling Spanish Central: Translation of darling Nglish: Translation of darling for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of darling for Arabic speakers
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