/ səˈblaɪm; NAmE / adjective , noun
■ adjective
1.
of very high quality and causing great admiration :
sublime beauty
a sublime combination of flavours
2.
( formal , often disapproving ) ( of a person's behaviour or attitudes ) extreme, especially in a way that shows they are not aware of what they are doing or are not concerned about what happens because of it :
the sublime confidence of youth
► sub·lime·ly adverb :
sublimely beautiful
She was sublimely unaware of the trouble she had caused.
► sub·lim·ity / səˈblɪməti; NAmE / noun [ U ]
■ noun
the sublime [ sing. ] something that is sublime :
He transforms the most ordinary subject into the sublime.
•
IDIOMS
- from the sublime to the ridiculous
••
WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (in the sense dignified, aloof ): from Latin sublimis , from sub- up to + a second element perhaps related to limen threshold, limus oblique.