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gentle
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As an adjective, gentle means tender and amiable. As a verb, it means become gentle.
Meanings of gentle
21 meaningsadjective
Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.
“Stuart is a gentle man; he would never hurt you.”
Soft and mild rather than hard or severe.
“I felt something touch my shoulder; it was gentle and a little slimy.”
Docile and easily managed.
“We had a gentle swim in the lake.”
“a gentle horse”
Gradual rather than steep or sudden.
“The walks in this area have a gentle incline.”
Polite and respectful rather than rude.
“He gave me a gentle reminder that we had to hurry up.”
Having or showing a kindly or tender nature
“the gentle touch of her hand”
“her gentle manner was comforting”
“a gentle sensitive nature”
Quiet and soothing
“a gentle voice”
“a gentle nocturne”
Belonging to or characteristic of the nobility or aristocracy
“an aristocratic family”
“aristocratic Bostonians”
“aristocratic government”
Similar: aristocratic, aristocratical, blue, blue-blooded, patrician
Older and rare meanings (1)
archaicWell-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble.
verb
To become gentle.
animal husbandryTo break; to tame; to domesticate.
To soothe; to calm; to make gentle.
Cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of
“She managed to mollify the angry customer”
Similar: pacify, lenify, conciliate, assuage, appease, mollifyStroke soothingly
Older and rare meanings (1)
obsoleteTo ennoble.
noun
fishingA maggot used as bait by anglers.
A trained falcon, or falcon-gentil.
Older and rare meanings (1)
archaicA person of high birth.
Meanings from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0).