Definition of darling
1 : a dearly loved person
2 : favorite a director who is the darling of the critics
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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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Budapest has become a tourism darling, and for good reason.
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At his height, an outlandish and flamboyant figure, Lil' Jon was a commercial darling during the mid-aught.
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The Astros rid themselves of several stat darlings who gave too many empty at-bats.
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The never-ending parade of offensive memes has made him a darling of far-right trolls and a horror to most everyone else.
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In recent years, CRISPR has displaced RNAi as the newest darling of genetic engineering.
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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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A very pregnant female goat, who wasn't supposed to give birth until July, had produced a darling little newborn with dark brown fur.
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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