comfort
Americanverb (used with object)
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comforts,
present (3rd person singular)
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comforted,
past participle, past
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comforting
present participle
noun
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comforts
plural
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relief in affliction; consolation; solace.
Her presence was a comfort to him.
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a feeling of relief or consolation.
Her forgiveness afforded him great comfort.
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a person or thing that gives consolation.
She was a great comfort to him.
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a cause or matter of relief or satisfaction.
The patient's recovery was a comfort to the doctor.
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a state of ease and satisfaction of bodily wants, with freedom from pain and anxiety.
He is a man who enjoys his comfort.
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something that promotes such a state.
His wealth allows him to enjoy a high degree of comfort.
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Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. a comforter or quilt.
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Obsolete. strengthening aid; assistance.
noun
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a state of ease or well-being
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relief from affliction, grief, etc
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a person, thing, or event that brings solace or ease
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obsolete support
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(usually plural) something that affords physical ease and relaxation
verb
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to ease the pain of; soothe; cheer
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to bring physical ease to
Synonym Usage
Comfort, console, relieve, soothe imply assuaging sorrow, worry, discomfort, or pain. To comfort is to lessen the sadness or sorrow of someone and to strengthen by inspiring with hope and restoring a cheerful outlook: to comfort a despairing person. Console, a more formal word, means to make grief or distress seem lighter, by means of kindness and thoughtful attentions: to console a bereaved parent. Relieve means to lighten, lessen, or remove pain, trouble, discomfort, or hardship: to relieve a needy person. Soothe means to pacify or calm: to soothe a child. See ease.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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comfortlessnessnoun
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comfortingadjective
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comfortlessadjective
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uncomfortedadjective
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comfortinglyadverb
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comfortlesslyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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comfortsimple
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comfortssimple
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have comfortedperfect
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has comfortedperfect
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am comfortingprogressive
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are comfortingprogressive
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is comfortingprogressive
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have been comfortingperfect progressive
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has been comfortingperfect progressive
Past
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comfortedsimple
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had comfortedperfect
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was comfortingprogressive
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were comfortingprogressive
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had been comfortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of comfort
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English verb comfortien, from Anglo-French, Old French conforter, from Late Latin confortāre “to strengthen,” equivalent to con- con- ( def. ) + -fortāre, verb suffix formed from Latin fortis “strong”; noun derived from the verb
Explanation
To comfort someone is to give solace or to soothe. You might comfort your brother when his favorite team gets knocked out of the playoffs. The verb comfort comes from the Latin word comfortare, which means “strengthen greatly.” To give comfort is to shore up the mood or physical state of someone else. It might take a long time to comfort your mother after her cat disappears. As a noun, comfort is anything that provides satisfaction or a relaxed and easy feeling. You might think that the comfort of your new shoes cannot be surpassed.
Vocabulary lists containing comfort
Stay Strong: Forc and Fort
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act III
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com-, con-
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
If they’re blown off course and far from home, they might not realize it if the water temperature is still within their comfort zone.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
"The compassion shown by all of you will never be forgotten by us, and brought us comfort and strength at the darkest time of our lives," the post added.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
A younger left, as the statement says at the beginning: “We are people of this generation, bred in at least modest comfort, housed now in universities . . .”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Her role on “The Five” has made her an advocate of going into not-so-friendly territory to debate issues rather than staying in comfort zones where views are unchallenged.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
He longed to throw himself into her arms and cry for comfort, but there would be no comfort there.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
With higher ticket prices and more competition — not only with other touring bands but with the allures of home comforts — audiences need a bigger draw.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Young Tony enjoys all the protections and comforts of an upper-middle-class existence in New Jersey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
There’s a trade-off: We experience a little emotional discomfort by being constantly surveilled, but we are rewarded with the more physical comforts of safety and efficiency.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2026
Fery grew up a short walk away from the All England Club and is enjoying the home comforts of staying with his family during the Championships.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
Here I was able to get some comforts for Magwitch,—Provis no longer,—who had received some very severe injury in the chest, and a deep cut in the head.
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Reyna: In the studio, I had a lot of moments where I felt totally alone, but what comforted me was our creative process.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
If you have watched any of these — if they comforted you on your worst days and made good ones better — Burrows had a hand in making your life funnier.
From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2026
I learned to regulate difficult emotions—sadness, anger, fear—much as I had comforted the wounded child alive within me.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
He told the BBC he was both overwhelmed and comforted by the massive police presence when he arrived at the centre, San Diego County's second largest mosque, which also houses a primary school.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
The timepiece’s cool weight comforted me, and when the passing streetlamps permitted, I watched the second hand continue its steady revolution around the porcelain dial.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
“She called us, bawling, and we were loading the dog, comforting her,” Dowd said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026
These are followed by a series of clips where Trump is seen picking up the cap of a US marine, saluting at a repatriation ceremony and comforting the families of fallen soldiers.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
This will be its sixth season in five years, and in an age when streaming shows can take years between seasons, there’s something comforting in such a reliably consistent cadence.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026
There was a comforting nostalgia in watching her surrounded by tchotchkes, radiating the loose, warm confidence that made “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” such a phenomenon in the 1990s.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
The children’s section still has the comforting smell of old paper and Elmer’s glue.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
