LULLABY (lullabied)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected form: lullabied   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does lullaby mean? 

• LULLABY (noun)
  The noun LULLABY has 2 senses:

1. a quiet song intended to lull a child to sleep

2. the act of singing a quiet song to lull a child to sleep

  Familiarity information: LULLABY used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• LULLABY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A quiet song intended to lull a child to sleep

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

berceuse; cradlesong; lullaby

Hypernyms ("lullaby" is a kind of...):

song; vocal (a short musical composition with words)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The act of singing a quiet song to lull a child to sleep

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

cradlesong; lullaby

Hypernyms ("lullaby" is a kind of...):

song; strain (the act of singing)

 Context examples 

The first sound in the morning was her voice as she went about the house singing like a lark, and the last sound at night was the same cheery sound, for the girls never grew too old for that familiar lullaby.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

The same lulling sounds acted as a lullaby to my too keen sensations; when I placed my head upon my pillow, sleep crept over me; I felt it as it came and blessed the giver of oblivion.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

Scott had married and gone to housekeeping not far off, and John fell into the way of running over for an hour or two of an evening, when his own parlor was empty, and his own wife singing lullabies that seemed to have no end.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

She brought it bits of bouquets, she read to it, took it out to breathe fresh air, hidden under her coat, she sang it lullabies and never went to bed without kissing its dirty face and whispering tenderly, I hope you'll have a good night, my poor dear.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

No coaxing, no sugar, no lullaby, no story, even the light was put out and only the red glow of the fire enlivened the 'big dark' which Demi regarded with curiosity rather than fear.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)