charm

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: chäm, IPA^(key): /tʃɑːm/
• (General American) enPR: chärm, IPA^(key): /t͡ʃɑɹm/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)m

Etymology 1

From Middle English charme, from Old French charme (“chant, magic spell”), from Latin carmen (“song, incantation”).

Alternative forms

• charme (obsolete)

Noun

charm (countable and uncountable, plural charms)

1. An object, act or words believed to have magic power (usually carries a positive connotation).

   Synonyms: incantation, spell, talisman

   a charm against evil

   It works like a charm.

2. (often in the plural) The ability to persuade, delight or arouse admiration.

   Synonyms: appeal, attraction, charisma

   Antonyms: boredom, dryness

   He had great personal charm.

   She tried to win him over with her charms.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book VIII”, in Paradise Lost. , London: [Samuel Simmons], , →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: , London: Basil Montagu Pickering , 1873, →OCLC:

     […] the charm of Beauties powerful glance.

   • 1697, [William] Congreve, The Mourning Bride, a Tragedy. , London: Jacob Tonson, , →OCLC, Act I, page 1:

     Muſick has Charms to ſooth a ſavage Breaſt,
     To ſoften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.

   • 1714, Alexander Pope, “The Rape of the Lock”, in The Works of Mr. Alexander Pope, volume I, London: W Bowyer, for Bernard Lintot, , published 1717, →OCLC, canto V, page 160:

     Charms ſtrike the ſight, but merit wins the ſoul.

   • 1769, Firishta, translated by Alexander Dow, Tales translated from the Persian of Inatulla of Delhi, volume I, Dublin: P. and W. Wilson et al., page 15:

     Her coyneſs was conquered by aſſiduity, and at laſt ſhe conſented to reſign the treaſure of her charms to my paſſion.

3. A small trinket on a bracelet or chain, etc., traditionally supposed to confer luck upon the wearer.

   Synonyms: amulet, dangle, ornament

   She wears a charm bracelet on her wrist.

4. (particle physics) A quantum number of hadrons determined by the number of charm quarks and antiquarks.

   Coordinate term: strangeness

   • 1975 July 31, Sandra Blakeslee, “Another Particle Believed Discovered”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     In trying to understand the long life of the psi particle, physicists postulated the notion of “charm.” Charm, they say, prevents the “easy” decay of particles and thus prolongs their lifetimes. U particles, Dr. Pert said, may carry the property of charm.

   • 2020, James E. Dodd, Ben Gripaios, The Ideas of Particle Physics, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 173:

     Mesons which combine the charmed quark with the up or down antiquarks are denoted the D mesons. These mesons carry explicit charm (i.e. have a non-zero charm quantum number), just as the K mesons carry strangeness.

5. (finance) A second-order measure of derivative price sensitivity, expressed as the instantaneous rate of change of delta with respect to time.

   Synonyms: delta decay, DdeltaDtime

   Hypernym: Greeks

6. (graphical user interface, Microsoft Windows) An icon providing quick access to a command or setting.
   • 2012, J. Peter Bruzzese, Using Windows 8:

     Undoubtedly one of the most important pieces to navigating Windows 8, charms are actually not visible until a command to show them is given.

Translations

Verb

charm (third-person singular simple present charms, present participle charming, simple past and past participle charmed)

2. To seduce, persuade or fascinate someone or something.

   Synonyms: delight, enchant, entrance

   He charmed her with his dashing tales of his days as a sailor.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. , London: [Samuel Simmons], , →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: , London: Basil Montagu Pickering , 1873, →OCLC:

     […] they, on thir mirth & dance / Intent, with jocond Muſic charm his ear;

   • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 58:

     The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on a certain afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track. The three returned wondering and charmed with Mrs. Cooke; they were sure she had had no hand in the furnishing of that atrocious house.

3. (transitive) To use a magical charm upon; to subdue, control, or summon by incantation or supernatural influence.

   Synonyms: bewitch, enchant, ensorcel, enspell

   After winning three games while wearing the chain, Dan began to think it had been charmed.

   • 1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 389, column 2:

     Nor no witch-craft charme thee.

4. To protect with, or make invulnerable by, spells, charms, or supernatural influences.

   She led a charmed life.

   • 1611 April (first recorded performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Cymbeline”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 393, column 1:

     I, in mine owne woe charm’d, / Could not finde death, […]

5. (obsolete, rare) To make music upon.
   • 1579, Immeritô [pseudonym; Edmund Spenser], “October. Aegloga Decima.”, in The Shepheardes Calender: , London: Hugh Singleton, , →OCLC; reprinted as H Oskar Sommer, editor, The Shepheardes Calender , London: John C. Nimmo, , 1890, →OCLC, folio 42, recto:

     But ah my corage cooles ere it be warme, / For thy, content vs in thys humble ſhade: / Where no ſuch troublous tydes han vs aſſayde, / Here we our ſlender pipes may ſafely charme.

6. To subdue or overcome by some secret power, or by that which gives pleasure; to allay; to soothe.
   • 1687 (date written), Alexander Pope, “Ode for Musick on St. Cecilia’s Day”, in The Works of Mr. Alexander Pope, volume I, London: W Bowyer, for Bernard Lintot, , →OCLC, canto VII, page 378:

     Music the fierceſt griefs can charm, / And fate's ſevereſt rage diſarm: […]

Translations

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Variant of chirm, from Middle English chirme, from Old English ċierm (“cry, alarm”), from Proto-Germanic *karmiz.

Alternative forms

• jarm (dialectal)

Noun

charm (plural charms)

1. The mixed sound of many voices, especially of birds or children.
   • 1591, Ed[mund] Sp[enser], “The Teares of the Muses”, in Complaints. Containing Sundrie Small Poemes of the Worlds Vanitie. , London: William Ponsonbie, , →OCLC:

     […] Free libertie to chaunt our charmes at will: […]

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. , London: [Samuel Simmons], , →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: , London: Basil Montagu Pickering , 1873, →OCLC:

     Sweet is the breath of morn, her riſing ſweet,
     With charm of earlieſt Birds;

   • 1955, William Golding, The Inheritors, Faber and Faber, published 2005, page 152:

     The laughter rose like the charm of starlings.

2. A flock, group (especially of finches).
   • 2018, Holly Ringland, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart:

     A charm of finches flew overhead, singing into the vivid afternoon sky.

Further reading

• charm (quantum number) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• charm quark on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• March, march

Chinese

Etymology

From English charming.

Pronunciation

Adjective

charm

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) charming

Danish

Etymology 1

Borrowed from English charm.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Noun

charm c (singular definite charmen, plural indefinite charms)

1. charm (jewelry)

Inflection

Etymology 2

See charme (“to charm”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Verb

charm

1. imperative of charme

Palauan

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!

Noun

charm

1. animal

References

• charm in Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary, at tekinged.com.
• charm in Palauan-English Dictionary, at trussel2.com.
• charm in Lewis S. Josephs, Edwin G. McManus, Masa-aki Emesiochel (1977) Palauan-English Dictionary, University Press of Hawaii, →ISBN, page 35.

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɧarm/

Noun

charm c

1. charm; the ability to persuade, delight, or arouse admiration

Declension

Related terms

• charma
• charmant
• charmera
• charmig
• charmerande
• charmör

References

• charm in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• charm in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• charm in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)