TOP

Definition of mellow adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

mellow

adjective
 
/ˈmeləʊ/
 
/ˈmeləʊ/
(comparative mellower, superlative mellowest)
jump to other results
  1. (of colour or sound) soft, rich and pleasant
    • mellow autumn colours
    • Mellow music and lighting helped to create the right atmosphere.
    • The leaves looked golden in the mellow afternoon light.
    • The floor was of mellow golden stone.
    Topics Colours and Shapesc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • feel
    • look
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  2. (of a taste or flavour) smooth and pleasant
    • a mellow, fruity wine
    • coffee with a full mellow flavour
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • feel
    • look
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  3. (of people) calm, gentle and reasonable because of age or experience
    • Dad's certainly grown mellower with age.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • feel
    • look
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  4. (informal) (of people) relaxed, calm and happy, especially after drinking alcohol
    • After two glasses of wine, I was feeling mellow.
    Topics Feelingsc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • feel
    • look
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  5. Word Originlate Middle English (in the sense ‘ripe, sweet, and juicy’): perhaps from attributive use of Old English melu, melw- (see meal ‘ground grain or pulses’). The verb dates from the late 16th cent.
See mellow in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

Other results

All matches
Phrasal verbs
pepper
noun
 
 
From the Word list
Oxford 3000
A1
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day