soft, sweet, and full-flavored from ripeness, as fruit.
well-matured, as wines.
soft and rich, as sound, tones, color, or light.
made gentle and compassionate by age or maturity; softened.
friable or loamy, as soil.
mildly and pleasantly intoxicated or high.
pleasantly agreeable; free from tension, discord, etc.: a mellow neighborhood.
affably relaxed; easygoing; genial: a mellow teacher who is very popular with her students.
verb (used with or without object)
to make or become mellow.
noun
Slang. a state, atmosphere, or mood of ease and gentle relaxation.
Verb Phrases
mellow out,Slang.
to become detached from worry, strife, stress, etc.; relax: After final exams let's go down to the beach and mellow out.
to make more relaxed, agreeable, workable, etc.; soften or smooth: Chopin really mellows me out when I'm feeling tense.
Origin of mellow
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English mel(o)we, alteration (perhaps by dissimilation, in phrase meruw fruit) of Middle English meruw,Old English meru “soft”
I can’t quite explain why it was so delightful—the mellow vibe, his untroubled demeanor, the easy mastery of the skateboard, but damn.
A TikTok star’s ‘Dreams’ come true|Ellen McGirt|October 7, 2020|Fortune
From a distance, they may appear deceptively mellow, but they’re filled with craggy granite peaks, waterfalls, and tight gorges, so hikes are often full of rock scrambles and river crossings.
The Ultimate Shenandoah National Park Travel Guide|Graham Averill|October 7, 2020|Outside Online
For others, it’s a mellow cruise on easy dirt just outside of town.
Three Family-Friendly Adventures to Try This Fall|Outside Editors|September 17, 2020|Outside Online
This whitewater stand-up paddleboard provided our group with a new way to play around in the river when things were more mellow.
The Gear You Need to Bring on a 225-Mile River Trip|Mitch Breton|September 6, 2020|Outside Online
The following bright and mellow Monday, Uriguen cradles the new child.
Idaho Woman Who Gave Birth on Highway: ‘I Had to Pull My Pants Down to Get the Baby Out’|Dale Eisinger|July 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Muhammad Ali in Excelsis by Peter Richmond from GQ, April 1998 He is in mellow middle age now.
The Stacks: The True Greatness of Muhammad Ali|Peter Richmond|February 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His first wife, Sarah Loewen, recalled him as being “mellow.”
Terry Lee Loewen, the Mellow Kansas Man Who Dreamed of Jihad|Michael Daly|December 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As his longtime friend Bishop Desmond Tutu once told Sky News, “he needed that time in prison to mellow.”
Anger at the Heart of Nelson Mandela’s Violent Struggle|Christopher Dickey|December 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Can you put "mellow" on the label, or just give the chemical content?
Meet Mark Kleiman, the Man Who Will Be Washington State’s Pot Czar|Abby Haglage|March 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Dig in a good body of manure, and provide a mellow seed-bed.
The Culture of Vegetables and Flowers From Seeds and Roots, 16th Edition|Sutton and Sons
But this uproar would be speedily silenced, and the mellow voice ring out again, clear and commanding.
Initials Only|Anna Katharine Green
I really think it had all the words in it I know, except those about growing round and mellow.
The Adventures of Elizabeth in Rgen|Elizabeth von Arnim
Her round, mellow accent sounded in his ears like dream music.
The Hills of Refuge|Will N. Harben
We were in warm, mellow September down in our valley, but just up there—such a little way it seemed—were the drifts of winter.
The Car That Went Abroad|Albert Bigelow Paine
British Dictionary definitions for mellow
mellow
/ (ˈmɛləʊ) /
adjective
(esp of fruits) full-flavoured; sweet; ripe
(esp of wines) well-matured
(esp of colours or sounds) soft or rich
kind-hearted, esp through maturity or old age
genial, as through the effects of alcohol
(of soil) soft and loamy
verb
to make or become mellow; soften; mature
(foll by out)to become calm and relaxed or (esp of a drug) to have a calming or relaxing effect on (someone)
Derived forms of mellow
mellowly, adverbmellowness, noun
Word Origin for mellow
C15: perhaps from Old English meru soft (as through ripeness)