blithe
/blʌɪð
/adjective
1Showing a casual and cheerful indifference considered to be callous or improper: a blithe disregard for the rules of the road...
- But he never scorned security with the blithe indifference of the radical ideologues who used him as an authority on the evils of welfare.
- How do you strike the right balance between unnecessarily fostering fears and encouraging a blithe indifference to real and present dangers?
- The outrageousness of his action is matched only by the blithe indifference with which he apparently expects to carry it off.
Synonyms
heedless, uncaring, careless, casual, indifferent, thoughtless, unconcerned, unworried, untroubled;
nonchalant, cool, blasé, devil-may-care, irresponsible
1.1 literary Happy or carefree: a blithe seaside comedy...
- The pair play natives of that country - sweet, carefree adolescents whose blithe athleticism and pert demeanor are just a little cloying.
- The blithe spirit of the students perhaps best symbolises the fair that has evolved over the years, pitting the youngsters against their best peers.
- For such a blithe spirit, he certainly has a keen sense of the tragic.
Synonyms
happy, cheerful, cheery, light-hearted, jolly, merry, sunny, joyous, joyful, blissful, ecstatic, euphoric, elated, beatific, gladsome, mirthful;
carefree, easy-going, buoyant, airy, breezy, jaunty, in high spirits, without a care in the world;
animated, sprightly, vivacious, spirited, frisky
literary blithesome, jocund
dated gay
Derivatives
blitheness
- ‘I realised immediately that this was going to be a profound anecdote, and I've been dining out on it since,’ he purrs, with typical blitheness.
- His Second World War memoir, Slightly Out Of Focus, reveals a man who wore his bravery like blitheness.
- These is feigned blitheness about crises that will predictably attract immediate attention.
blithesome
/ adjective (literary) ...- From this it may be concluded that she eventually found that quiet domestic happiness which her cheerful, blithesome character required.
- The transition is from shadowy evil to the clearest and most blithesome benevolence.
- Her arm extended, she pointed for the Captain who sat slumped, once strong authority already deteriorating to blithesome foolishness.
Origin
Old English blīthe, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch blijde, also to bliss.