calm

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Relaxed and not worried, angry, or upset.

   She stayed calm even when the news was bad.

2. 2
   adj

   Without wind, storms, or rough water.

   The sea was calm and the sky was clear.

3. 3
   verb

   To make someone feel more relaxed and less upset.

   She tried to calm the crying baby.

4. 4
   noun

   A peaceful state with no worry, noise, or trouble.

   After the storm, a deep calm settled over the village.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Calm entered English through Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese from Greek kauma, “heat of the day,” perhaps with influence from Latin calere, “to be warm.” The underlying image was the quiet stillness of midday in a hot climate.

From Middle English calm, calme, from Middle French calme, probably from Old Italian calma, of uncertain origin. Calma may derive from Late Latin cauma (“heat of the midday sun”), from Ancient Greek καῦμα (kaûma, “heat, especially of the sun”), from καίω (kaíō, “to burn”), or possibly from Latin caleō. Compare also Lombardic *chalm, *chalma (“frozenness”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *kalmaz (“frozenness, cold”). Displaced native Middle English smilte (“quiet, still, gentle”) from Old English smylte (“quiet, tranquil, calm, serene”).

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External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary