1. Word finder
  2. Word definitions
  3. gentle

Find the word definition

What is "gentle"

Crossword clues for gentle

gentle
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
gentle
adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a gentle curve (=one that turns gradually in another direction)
▪ the river's gentle curves
a gentle reminder
▪ It was meant to be a gentle reminder rather than a criticism.
a gentle slope (=not steep)
▪ We went down a long gentle slope.
a gentle/light/soft tap
▪ There was a gentle tap on the door.
a gentle/soft/mild breeze
▪ It was a beautiful day with a blue sky and a gentle breeze.
a gentle/tender kiss
▪ She could still feel that last tender kiss.
a slight/gentle/wide bend (=that changes direction slightly or gradually)
▪ Ahead of us there was a wide bend in the river.
a subtle/gentle hint (=one that is not very easy to understand – sometimes used ironically when someone is being very obvious)
▪ I'm sick of her subtle hints that I'm not welcome here.
gentle humour (=jokes or stories that do not offend anyone)
▪ The plays uses gentle humor to make a strong point.
gentle persuasion
▪ After a little gentle persuasion, Debbie agreed to let us in.
gentle/light/moderate exercise (=not involving too much physical effort)
▪ Try to do some gentle exercise as part of your daily routine.
light/gentle (=not strong)
▪ Winds tomorrow will be light.
rolling/gentle hills (=hills with slopes that are not steep)
▪ He loved the green rolling hills of Dorset.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
as
▪ His eyes were big and brown and as gentle as a baby's.
▪ Rather it is essential to face in and front point of the ice, even on slopes as gentle as 30 degrees.
▪ He may be as tough as a dinosaur, but he's as gentle as a lamb.
▪ Walking and swimming are activities which can be as gentle or as vigorous as you care to make them.
▪ It's ridiculous for owners of these dangerous beasts to claim they are as gentle as lambs.
more
▪ I think it's a healthier, more gentle decade.
▪ Bruno also benefited from the floor time and began being more gentle and involved in his relationship with Hannah.
▪ Perhaps Guildford schoolboys are more gentle than the rest.
▪ Morning sun is more gentle than afternoon sun.
▪ Peel-off masks are more gentle but less cleansing than clay.
▪ Switch to a non-soap - a more gentle, rinse-off, creamy cleanser.
▪ If only the nurses were less ... were a little more gentle.
most
▪ He was a most gentle person and yet he could appear implacable.
▪ Beekeepers can cull out defensive colonies, fortunately, and select only the most gentle characteristics.
▪ He was old, infirm, and the most gentle man she had ever met.
▪ During the hearings political protests, as such, were most gentle: one patriot inquiring after the patriotism of another.
so
▪ That day in the garden ... you were so innocent, so gentle, so untouched by war and betrayal.
▪ She looks so gentle, so much at peace.
▪ The soft yellow light which looks so gentle to you but which sears my guts.
▪ But Mr Berzins seems so gentle and appreciative.
▪ He held her close, smoothing back her hair, his big hands so gentle.
▪ So young, so tender, so gentle, so virile.
▪ He was pleased to see her so gentle for once, and she was singing him to sleep.
▪ Generally speaking, the machine system of section-making is so gentle that only very difficult lithologies and loose sediments will need impregnation.
very
▪ Easily Accessible: The surrounding countryside is very gentle and peaceful.
▪ They were big and very gentle.
▪ A family man, very gentle.
▪ As the story was told I was very gentle and self-effacing, and she was out to damage every-thing that she could.
▪ The walking here is very gentle.
▪ He was very nice and very gentle.
▪ To enable waves to break some distance offshore it is necessary that the offshore profile should possess a very gentle gradient.
▪ Just that she was a very simple, ordinary girl. Very gentle, full of fun.
■ NOUN
breeze
▪ Uncertain which way to go, Benny gradually became aware of a gentle breeze blowing from the right.
▪ You should send a strong wind over the rivers, and a gentle breeze upon the orchards.
▪ Recent bootprints were marked in the thin coating of green sandy soil that had been blown by gentle breezes over the buildings.
▪ A gentle breeze blew through the windows, lightly rustling the curtains.
▪ A soft June morning with a blue sky and a gentle breeze.
▪ A gentle breeze blows out of the west.
▪ Crickets were singing loudly up here, and a gentle breeze stirred the leaves of the cypresses.
▪ Hear the birds and cicadas, listen for the gentle breeze rustling the leaves.
curve
▪ The cures include starting the clubhead back low to the turf on a gentle curve.
▪ Long gentle curves as the asphalt clefts the wilderness.
▪ It was a two-storey white house nestling just within the last gentle curve up to the headland.
▪ The clubhead must start on a gentle curve low to the turf. 4.
▪ They were placed in a gentle curve, about twenty traps in all, facing the outgoing tide.
▪ Cut away and down behind the bud in a gentle curve.
▪ Even such gentle curves require impressive magnets.
▪ The gentle curve of her body was like a piece of rock smoothed by the sea.
exercise
▪ Very gentle exercise is, on the other hand, an excellent way of waking up.
▪ A friend of mine, Audrey Walker, used to come and involve the patients in some gentle exercises.
▪ I also started a gentle exercise programme.
finger
▪ He traced the contours of her face with gentle fingers, outlining the curve of her mouth, stroking her temples.
▪ I stooped quickly and laid the back of a gentle finger against one of the eggs.
▪ She turns away and lays a gentle finger on Rainbow's still trembling cheek.
hand
▪ She tried to raise herself from the settee but gentle hands restrained her.
▪ But what was it that Saint-Mames held cupped in his gentle hands, locked together at the base of his torso?
▪ He caressed her sides with gentle hands, gloveman's hands.
▪ As the flickering tongue scooped inside her shallow navel, so she felt gentle hands squeezing her pliant gourds.
heat
▪ Boil for 5 minutes on gentle heat then add mushroom - and simmer in a covered saucepan for a further 7 minutes.
▪ Use the gentler heat if your dryer has variable adjustments.
▪ Samples can be left in the impregnation chamber overnight before curing under gentle heat.
▪ Let the butter melt over very gentle heat.
▪ Return to a gentle heat and stir until the sauce thickens.
▪ Cook over a gentle heat, stirring until the mixture turns thick. 3.
▪ Ian left the colour to develop for the maximum time of forty minutes under a gentle heat.
▪ Add the herring fillets and cook for 2 minutes on both sides over a gentle heat.
hill
▪ The surrounding area is very beautiful with gentle hills, waterfalls and purple heather.
▪ It is framed by gentle hills that look down on oak groves that abound with deer, bobcats and golden eagles.
▪ Greener than anything you've ever known, with gentle hills and blue lakes.
▪ For a while it looks like the red earth, green vegetation and gentle hills of Sedona.
▪ Any analogy with climbing a gentle hill breaks down.
▪ To me they would only ever belong among the gentle hills and quiet, winding lanes of Upper Killington.
▪ Further evidence of human activity is to be found in the gentle hills which form the northern edge of the Scotscraig valley.
▪ Most of the town is built on the valley floor, but the east and west sides rise into gentle hills.
man
▪ A kind man, a gentle man.
▪ Some of these mourners were devastated by the loss of this gentle man.
▪ He was a gentle man by nature, but he would suddenly fall into a depression and lose all confidence in himself.
▪ He was, in every sense, a gentleman and a gentle man.
▪ He was a gentle man, happily dominated by his competent wife.
▪ So she had left her native Ireland with a new, gentle man and she was expecting a baby.
▪ Clean-shaven and with a full head of greying hair, he was known as a gentle man, but nobody crossed him.
▪ He was old, infirm, and the most gentle man she had ever met.
persuasion
▪ We believe it will take more than just gentle persuasion to bring an end to over-specification and waste.
▪ The first victim was packaging buyer,, who agreed, after a little gentle persuasion, to be covered with foam.
▪ Into Water I believe that to conquer fear of water, gentle persuasion is the best tack.
pressure
▪ She could still taste his kiss, still feel the firm yet gentle pressure of his lips.
▪ Too weak to stand, she gave in to the gentle pressure of his hands and sat down.
▪ Meg tried to get up to see, but with a gentle pressure he pushed her back down.
▪ Apply gentle pressure to make them appear more extreme.
▪ The gentle pressure on her lips suddenly wasn't there any more, and she felt bereft.
▪ A gentle pressure in the small of his back told him that the thruster pack had fired.
▪ All this suggests that gentle pressure will not work on the press.
slope
▪ The ponies were growing restless, and she shook the reins and sent them on down the gentle slope towards the house.
▪ The community typically occurs on peaty soils on gentle slopes or plateaus at higher altitudes.
▪ In the hummocky terrain of the valley floor the hollows, channels and gentle slopes are occupied by peat.
▪ Although this is not a beginner's resort, it's easy to escape to the more gentle slopes of Lech.
▪ On gentle slopes it's easy to place the foot with the sole flat; your bodyweight will then secure the points.
▪ It looked perfect - gentle slopes within a semi circular bowl of hills.
smile
▪ The man smiled a wry but gentle smile and beckoned me in.
▪ She answered all my questions with a gentle smile and an air of long-suffering patience.
▪ Thinking about it and its possible implications, he drifted into a fitful doze, a gentle smile on his face.
▪ A gentle smile spread over her face, unnoticed beneath her mask.
▪ I felt a little stupid but at least it elicited a gentle smile.
▪ It had been a present from the colonel - to keep her company, he'd insisted with his gentle smile.
stroll
▪ A gentle stroll through the gardens led down to the beautiful long, wide beach.
▪ The weather, being much better than expected, allowed us to take a gentle stroll and some light refreshment.
▪ The area offers superb walks ranging from gentle strolls to full day hikes.
touch
▪ A gentle touch on her cheek, then her arm.
▪ Presently it felt the gentle touch of radiations, trying to probe its secrets.
▪ And a gentle touch for the gentle dead.
▪ He had a gentle touch, a musician's touch.
▪ Sensitive skins need the gentle touch - Moistura fragrance Free products from Cyclax provide the perfect solution.
▪ Pray that they would know the gentle touch of our Lord in their lives in the coming days.
▪ They used the gentle touch to minimise the pressure on the 25-year-old woman following her horrific experience.
▪ The door opened again, this time with a gentle touch, and the young Sri Lankan maid came in.
voice
▪ A gentle voice behind him said Easy, Joe, and he spun around in terror and surprise.
▪ The plums are so bitter by themselves, Mrs Sano tells us in her gentle voice, that they are almost inedible.
▪ I opened it and there he was, a tall, slightly stooping figure who spoke with a gentle voice.
▪ From out of the terrible confusion came a different voice, a gentle voice, a voice that understood.
walk
▪ Just outside Dundee there are several country parks ideal for gentle walks.
▪ She took gentle walks each day.
▪ Gorleston, on the southern outskirts of town, offers a gentle walk and a pleasing test.
▪ Easily Accessible: There are several gentle walks along the banks of the Teme.
▪ This no nonsense guide is good for those wanting to go on an interesting selection of gentle walks.
▪ Next was a gentle walk around the wooded peninsula to take a closer look at Osa Fjord.
▪ His condition steadily deteriorated and he contented himself with gentle walks near his home.
way
▪ Eve had made short work of anyone who took advantage of Benny's gentle ways.
▪ These don't have to be permanent measures, just gentle ways of gradually increasing individual confidence.
▪ She had the same tall grace and was equally good looking in a gentler way with great soulful eyes.
▪ Also you have Russell's gentle ways.
▪ Perhaps a gentler way would be to introduce a system of rationing fuel.
▪ Part-time jobs are a gentle way into a new job area, without too much commitment. 2.
▪ Uncomfortably Auguste was made aware in the gentlest way that he was indeed a suspect at this early stage.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ a sweet, gentle girl who wouldn't hurt a fly
▪ Her voice is gentle and warm.
▪ Mia's such a gentle person.
▪ My father was a professional boxer, but at home with the family he was always quiet and gentle.
▪ She lay on the beach enjoying the gentle breeze.
▪ the gentle warmth of the fire
▪ The program contains nine gentle exercise routines set to music.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ It is also occasionally found growing in small colonies in shallower parts of lakes with gentle water turbulence.
▪ Oh, Lee, you're the gentlest person I know.
▪ On a sunny afternoon we explored the gentler scenery near Henley and Oxford.
▪ She looks so gentle, so much at peace.
▪ The gentle and yet rapid response that one achieves has to be experienced to be understood.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Gentle

Gentle \Gen"tle\, a. [Compar. Gentler; superl. Gentlest.] [OE. gentil, F. gentil noble, pretty, graceful, fr. L. gentilis of the same clan or race, fr. gens, gentis, tribe, clan, race, orig. that which belongs together by birth, fr. the root of genere, gignere, to beget; hence gentle, properly, of birth or family, that is, of good or noble birth. See Gender, and cf. Genteel, Gentil, Gentile, Gentoo, Jaunty.]

  1. Well-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble.

    British society is divided into nobility, gentry, and yeomanry, and families are either noble, gentle, or simple.
    --Johnson's Cyc.

    The studies wherein our noble and gentle youth ought to bestow their time.
    --Milton.

  2. Quiet and refined in manners; not rough, harsh, or stern; mild; meek; bland; amiable; tender; as, a gentle nature, temper, or disposition; a gentle manner; a gentle address; a gentle voice.

  3. A compellative of respect, consideration, or conciliation; as, gentle reader. ``Gentle sirs.'' ``Gentle Jew.'' ``Gentle servant.''
    --Shak.

  4. Not wild, turbulent, or refractory; quiet and docile; tame; peaceable; as, a gentle horse.

  5. Soft; not violent or rough; not strong, loud, or disturbing; easy; soothing; pacific; as, a gentle touch; a gentle gallop . ``Gentle music.''
    --Sir J. Davies.

    O sleep! it is a gentle thing.
    --Coleridge.

    The gentle craft, the art or trade of shoemaking.

    Syn: Mild; meek; placid; dovelike; quiet; peaceful; pacific; bland; soft; tame; tractable; docile.

    Usage: Gentle, Tame, Mild, Meek. Gentle describes the natural disposition; tame, that which is subdued by training; mild implies a temper which is, by nature, not easily provoked; meek, a spirit which has been schooled to mildness by discipline or suffering. The lamb is gentle; the domestic fowl is tame; John, the Apostle, was mild; Moses was meek.

Gentle

Gentle \Gen"tle\, n.

  1. One well born; a gentleman. [Obs.]

    Gentles, methinks you frown.
    --Shak.

  2. A trained falcon. See Falcon-gentil.

  3. (Zo["o]l.) A dipterous larva used as fish bait.

Gentle

Gentle \Gent"le\, v. t.

  1. To make genteel; to raise from the vulgar; to ennoble. [Obs.]
    --Shak.

  2. To make smooth, cozy, or agreeable. [R. or Poet.]

    To gentle life's descent, We shut our eyes, and think it is a plain.
    --Young.

  3. To make kind and docile, as a horse. [Colloq.]

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
gentle

early 13c., "well-born," from Old French gentil "high-born, noble, of good family" (11c., in Modern French "nice, graceful, pleasing; fine pretty"), from Latin gentilis "of the same family or clan," from gens (genitive gentis) "race, clan," from root of gignere "beget," from PIE root *gen- "produce" (see genus). Sense of "gracious, kind" (now obsolete) first recorded late 13c.; that of "mild, tender" is 1550s. Older sense remains in gentleman.

Wiktionary
gentle

  1. 1 tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition. 2 soft and mild rather than hard or severe. n. 1 (context archaic English) A person of high birth. 2 (context archaic English) A maggot used as bait by anglers (rfex) 3 A trained falcon, or falcon-gentil. v

  2. 1 (context intransitive English) to become gentle (rfex) 2 (context transitive English) to ennoble (rfex) 3 (context transitive animal husbandry English) to break; to tame; to domesticate (rfex) 4 (context transitive English) To soothe; to calm. (rfex)

Related phrases:
WordNet
gentle

  1. v. cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of; "She managed to mollify the angry customer" [syn: pacify, lenify, conciliate, assuage, appease, mollify, placate, gruntle]

  2. give a title to someone; make someone a member of the nobility [syn: ennoble, entitle]

  3. stroke soothingly

gentle

  1. adj. soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe; "a gentle reprimand"; "a vein of gentle irony"; "poked gentle fun at him"

  2. having or showing a kindly or tender nature; "the gentle touch of her hand"; "her gentle manner was comforting"; "a gentle sensitive nature"; "gentle blue eyes"

  3. quiet and soothing; "a gentle voice"; "a gentle nocturne"

  4. belonging to or characteristic of the nobility or aristocracy; "an aristocratic family"; "aristocratic Bostonians"; "aristocratic government"; "a blue family"; "blue blood"; "the blue-blooded aristocracy"; "of gentle blood"; "patrician landholders of the American South"; "aristocratic bearing"; "aristocratic features"; "patrician tastes" [syn: aristocratic, aristocratical, blue, blue-blooded, patrician]

  5. easily handled or managed; "a gentle old horse, docile and obedient" [syn: docile]

  6. having little impact; "an easy pat on the shoulder"; "gentle rain"; "a gentle breeze"; "a soft (or light) tapping at the window" [syn: easy, soft]

  7. marked by moderate steepness; "an easy climb"; "a gentle slope" [syn: easy]

Related phrases:
Wikipedia
GENtle

GENtle is a free software under GPL license.

Gentle (comics)

Gentle (Nezhno Abidemi) is a fictional character, a mutant appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character has been depicted as a member of the student body of the Xavier Institute.

Usage examples of "gentle".

Besides, Kerr planned to crossbreed his Africans to produce a more gentle bee.

Now she was gone, and the two air service boys, left by themselves in that room of the old Lorraine chateau, counted the seconds and the minutes until they should hear a gentle signal at the door, to signify that Bessie and her mother were there, about to enter.

This sympathetic, poetic man, who came at night to call out to Ieronym and who strewed his akathists with flowers, stars, and rays of sunlight, lonely and not understood, I picture to myself as timid, pale, with gentle, meek, and sad features.

Dragons were not the best at gentle persuasion, and akh was wonderful.

Recently, in cases of dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea dysmenorrhagia, and like sexual disorders, massage or gentle flagellation of the parts contiguous with the genitalia and pelvic viscera has been recommended.

They had charted an amphib and had spent week after blissful week hopping from island to island or just mooring out in the gentle seas, soaking up the sun and each other.

I felt this was an occasion for a little gentle management, and I answered good-humouredly that the love he thought he noticed was wholly imaginary, and that he was wrong to entertain any suspicions as to so virtuous a girl as Donna Ignazia.

She gave his skin a few gentle slaps to bring out the antecubital vein.

Humantown, to the infirmary, where she was dressed in warm hospital whites and put to bed with graduated doses of some gentle anxiolytic drug.

Livorno ship was announced in the street and I was glad to get out, anticipating spending a little time in gentle disputation with the Arminians on my way.

By the most gentle arts he labored to inspire the fierce multitude with a sense of duty, and to restore at least a faint image of that discipline to which the Romans owed their empire over so many other nations, as warlike and more powerful than themselves.

Gentle breezes from the tower of Aiolas wafted them high above warm, scented seas, till suddenly they came upon Zeus, holding court upon double-headed Parnassus, his golden throne flanked by Apollo and the Muses on the right hand, and by ivy-wreathed Dionysus and pleasure-flushed Bacchae on the left hand.

Gentle breezes from the tower of Aiolas wafted them high above warm, scented seas, till suddenly they came upon Zeus, holding court upon double-headed Parnassus, his golden throne flanked by Apollo and the Muses on the right hand, and by ivy-wreathed Dionysus and pleasure--flushed Bacchae on the left hand.

The single fifty-watt bulb had no doubt been imposed by her employers for the same reasons of economy that had preserved the integrity of the whole space, but the gentle ingratiation of its dim glow, reflected back up off the worn flagstones, was beyond price.

Sensing the danger early in their relationship, Alejandro had concocted a tale of modest roots and a conflict between the gentle breeding of his mother and the barefisted call of his soldiering father.