as in accent
the attractive quality of speech or music that rises and falls in a pleasing pattern
There was a charming lilt to her voice. a tune with a lilt
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Recent Examples of lilt
Liam Hess, Vogue, 4 Feb. 2026
Being the naive newbie in Idaho does suit Cale, with his British lilt and fey enthusiasm for the manliness of the West.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
Cat Cardenas, Rolling Stone, 13 Oct. 2025
Carpenter is plainly a student of Parton’s, evoking her pinup styling (voluminous hair, big red lips), her persona (sharp with a knowing wink), and her voice, which is rich and husky and accompanied by a country lilt.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lilt
Noun
As the song unfolds, their voices begin to braid together like twin strands of ivy—a Scottish lilt and a Montana twang—creeping across a hard stone wall of fuzzy grunge guitars.
—Liam Hess, Vogue, 4 Feb. 2026
Being the naive newbie in Idaho does suit Cale, with his British lilt and fey enthusiasm for the manliness of the West.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
Verb
The album is a triumphant release that balances anger and grief and, at times, surprising joy, with Estrada’s bright, lilting soprano piercing through the veil of her pain.
—Cat Cardenas, Rolling Stone, 13 Oct. 2025
Carpenter is plainly a student of Parton’s, evoking her pinup styling (voluminous hair, big red lips), her persona (sharp with a knowing wink), and her voice, which is rich and husky and accompanied by a country lilt.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lilt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lilt
Noun
-
Another modernized it with bold accents and colors, plus upgraded surfaces.—
Sarah Lyon,
The Spruce,
3 May 2026
-
Still, there are occasional Lincoln accents.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
3 May 2026
Verb
-
Nat King Cole crooned about its kicks in a 1946 hit song.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Adam Sandler crooned it in the 2006 Click, as the soundtrack to his first kiss with Kate Beckinsale.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
23 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The race there begins somberly in the museum before runners bound up one flight of stairs into a hallway that leads into the main stairwell; from there, the steps settle into continuous, shallow right turns providing a repetitive, hypnotic cadence.—
Michelle Sinclair Colman,
Curbed,
7 May 2026
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For now, the new norm at Cape Canaveral will average about one Falcon 9 launch per week, approximately the same as SpaceX’s launch cadence at the Florida spaceport in 2023.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
6 May 2026
Verb
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The track begins with Winter’s distinct vocals warbling and wobbling over a tender percussion groove.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
8 July 2025
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The famous John Williams fanfare that blasted Star Wars onto our screens had appreciably less impact than even a standard screen would now offer, let alone IMAX and Dolby Cinema premium offerings while at some parts of the film, the sound warbled a little, before returning to normal.—
Benny Har-Even,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
Noun
-
The show felt alive, inhaling and exhaling guests in a natural rhythm.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 May 2026
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The way that some musicians can innately pick up a rhythm, Stewart opined, is the way that concepts in football click in York’s brain.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
In the fall, the workers trade in their pruning shears for knives sharp enough to skin a deer in minutes.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
28 Nov. 2025
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Today there’s a rich universe of supplemental Pynchon material ranging from prose only an English PhD could unpack, to sharp analysis that makes the experience of reading Pynchon communal and fun.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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At the Golden Nugget’s four locations, our in-person diners have started returning to pre-pandemic numbers, and delivery, which spiked in 2020, is still humming.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2026
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His body may be showing its age, but his mind still hums like the Big House before kickoff.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
6 May 2026
Verb
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In a now-viral clip, Carpenter overheard someone from the crowd trilling during her set for Weekend 1 and asked if the audience member was yodeling.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
11 Apr. 2026
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Serene spa music, a blend of classical piano and loudly chirping birds, trilled in the background as the machine sloshed and gurgled.—
Deborah Vankin,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Lilt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lilt. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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