balmy









balmy


adjective, balm·i·er, balm·i·est.

  1. mild and refreshing; soft; soothing: balmy weather.
  2. having the qualities of balm; aromatic; fragrant: balmy leaves.
  3. producing balm: balmy plants; a balmy shrub.
  4. Informal. crazy; foolish; eccentric.

adjective balmier or balmiest

  1. (of weather) mild and pleasant
  2. having the qualities of balm; fragrant or soothing
  3. a variant spelling of barmy
adj.

c.1500, “delicately fragrant,” from balm + -y (2). Figurative use for “soothing” dates from c.1600; of breezes, air, etc. “mild, fragrant” (combining both earlier senses) it is first attested 1704. Meaning “weak-minded, idiotic,” 1851, is from London slang.

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