soulful

English

Etymology 1

From soul +‎ -ful (adjective suffix).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsoʊlfəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊlfəl

Adjective

soulful (comparative more soulful, superlative most soulful)

1. Full of emotion and vigor.
   • 2007 May 20, Jaime Wolf, “Le Cinéma du Blockbuster”, in The New York Times‎:

     In the United States, Mr. Besson is primarily known as a superior director of stylish, mayhemic, even soulful films like “La Femme Nikita” and “Léon: The Professional.”

2. Full of soul.

Derived terms

• soulfully
• soulfulness

Etymology 2

From soul +‎ -ful (noun suffix).

Noun

soulful (plural soulfuls or soulsful)

1. An amount enough to fill one's soul.
   • 1958 September, Edwin D. Merry, “Float plane trolling”, in Flying Magazine, volume 63, number 3, page 35:

     At Sebago we hauled in Perch and whole soulfuls of lovely scenery.

   • 1961, America Sings, page 122:

     Bodiless soulsful of mud / Gurgled and settled down;

   • 2008, Joseph Wechsler, Look, Ma!: Stories with Points to Ponder, page 174:

     He grabbed his chin and went off to brood in a dark corner of Godel's office, then swished into space, hopping from planet to planet like someone walking off a soulful of problems.

   • 2014, Beth Moore, Portraits of Devotion, page 304:

     Could anyone use a strong dose of self-discipline? How about a heaping soulful of joy?