From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcalmcalm1 /kɑːm $ kɑːm, kɑːlm/ ●●● S3 W3 adjective (comparative calmer, superlative calmest) 1 CALMrelaxed and quiet, not angry, nervous, or upset Glen was calm and composed at the funeral.remain/stay/keep calm I tried to stay calm and just ignore him.2 if a place, period of time, or situation is calm, there is less activity, trouble etc than there sometimes is, or than there has been recently The financial markets are calm at the moment. The streets are calm again after last night’s disturbances.3 NOT MOVINGa sea, lake etc that is calm is smooth or has only gentle waves The seas were dead calm. —calmly adverb —calmness noun [uncountable]THESAURUScalm not getting angry, nervous, or upset, even in a difficult situationWe’ll talk about this later when you’re feeling calmer.Everyone praised Douglas for the calm way in which he handled the situation.relaxed not worried about anything, especially so that people feel comfortableLooking relaxed and confident, the president answered questions from the press. There was a relaxed atmosphere.chilled-out (also chilled) informal very relaxed and not worried – used especially by young peopleI’m much more chilled-out about the whole thing this year. laid-back informal someone who is laid-back is always relaxed and never seems to get worried or annoyed about anythingI like his laid-back attitude to life.My parents are pretty laid-back and don’t mind me staying out late.mellow informal relaxed, friendly, and happy, especially after drinking alcoholAfter a few drinks, everyone was pretty mellow.cool informal staying calm and not showing your emotions, especially when other people are getting excited or angryHe is the kind of player who always manages to stay cool, even under pressure.She was as cool as a cucumber (=very cool).keep your head to manage to stay calm and behave in a sensible way in a difficult or frightening situationIn this job you need to be good at keeping your head in a crisis.
Examples from the Corpus
calm• The sea was dead calm.• His eyes, which, moments earlier, had been filled with fear and horror, were now clear, almost calm.• After yesterday's fighting, the region is now calm again.• My sister was always calm and careful, whereas I would get excited and upset by the slightest thing.• Joe is a very calm and competent flying instructor.• Even when Peter began, the sky was pale, the winds were calm, and the air was temperate.• Keep calm and try not to panic.• The night was calm and warm.• Baldwin's main role was to keep his colleagues and the country as calm as possible.• Hugh remained calm at the wheel, driving with the window open.• It was a calm, clear, beautiful day.• Once on board, you can relax in calm, comfortable surroundings.• I was trying to sound calm even though I was very upset.• He is a Sikh, a religious man, very calm, kind.• So far, the menswear shows have had an air of calm rationality.• It created a picture of calm silent menace.• His mother was a calm, slow-speaking woman.• He has such a calm soothing voice - I could listen to him all night.• Inside the reef, on calmer waters, the boy gratefully nodded off to sleep, exhausted by his ordeal.• Everyone praised Douglas for the calm way in which he handled the situation.remain/stay/keep calm• He told himself to stay calm.• Please stay in your seats and keep calm.• She had returned to bed and Belinda could see that she was making an enormous effort to remain calm.• It is difficult to remain calm and objective when one's own child is distressed, even if only through bad temper.• He remained calm, made a call and forked out $ 700 of his own money for a plane ticket.• Or like saying stay calm or cheer up.dead calm• She sounded frank, dead calm.• The dead calm actor is, on the whole, dead boring.• Wind and tide were good: dead calm, dead low.calmcalm2 ●●○ noun [singular, uncountable] 1 PEACEFULa situation or time that is quiet and peacefulcalm of They remained on the terrace after dinner, enjoying the calm of the evening.morning/afternoon/evening calm A scream shattered the late afternoon calm. Hindu leaders appealed for calm (=asked that the public stay calm) after a temple was burnt to the ground. The presence of soldiers helped restore calm. The last five years have seen a period of relative calm.2 → the calm before the stormExamples from the Corpus
calm• What they amount to is an appeal for calm.• The Prime Minister visited the centre of the rioting and called for calm.• Inside the new gallery, there is an atmosphere of calm.• What we need now is a period of calm and stability.• Despite the excitement Wednesday, Chu reacted with what may be near-record calm.• By October 17th, the police had managed to restore calm.• We sat on the patio, enjoying the calm of the evening.relative calm• The history of many colleges can be seen as periods of conflict and confrontation alternating with periods of consolidation and relative calm.• Yet by comparison with the fate of most people in Caxias, this is a haven of relative calm and well-being.• But as the period of relative calm continued, it seemed to last an eternity.• The scent-sensitive Lepidoptera are thus associated with the strongly-scented flowers in the relative calm there.• Our path dropped down to the relative calm of the sea shore, edging craggy inlets beneath overhanging cliff tops.• The relative calm before this convention is almost eerie.calmcalm3 ●●○ (also calm down) verb [intransitive, transitive] 1 CALMto become quiet and relaxed after you have been angry, excited, nervous, or upset, or to make someone become quiet and relaxed He tried to calm the frightened children. Calm down and tell me what happened. We tried to calm people’s fears.calm yourself (down) She lit a cigarette to calm herself down.2 if a situation calms down, it becomes easier to deal with because there are fewer problems and it is not as busy as it was before It took months for things to calm down after we had the baby.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
calm• By this time Melissa's temper had calmed and her curiosity revived.• I waited until I'd calmed down a little, then went to talk to her.• He calmed down but continued to shiver with anticipation as I slipped on my shoes.• Leant back on my dressing table to calm down, clutched the handles.• Calm down, Morgan! Stop jumping around.• It's more important right now to calm down.• Alan spends the rest of the conversation calming her down, explaining options to her.• We were all very concerned and did our best to calm her.• She went past displays of posters and stills for upcoming films, gradually calming herself.• His lawyer's assurances that he would be found not guilty did little to calm him.calm yourself (down)• Ken is trying to calm himself.• She went past displays of posters and stills for upcoming films, gradually calming herself.• But his next step was to calm himself down, so that he could plan his moves strategically.• Let it be, I thought, still trying to calm myself down.• And when she calmed herself sufficiently to face him he had gone.• But now he tried to calm himself: there was no reason for nerves, he told himself.• I went to my room and calmed myself with some invisible mending.things ... calm down• Since last year, things have calmed down.• With good help, things calmed down.• Stopping again for things to calm down I began to do a few unwelcome sums.• With their second child, Dierdre, things calmed down in just a few weeks.• Things had calmed down on the Island and Papi had started making real money in his office up in the Bronx.• I think things will calm down very quickly.Origin calm2 (1300-1400) Old French calme, from Late Latin cauma “heat”; because everything is quiet and still in the heat of the middle part of the day 