irenic

American  

[ahy-ren-ik, ahy-ree-nik] / aɪˈrɛn ɪk, aɪˈri nɪk /

Also irenical or eirenic

adjective

1. tending to promote peace or reconciliation; peaceful or conciliatory.

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irenic British  

/ aɪˈriːnɪk, -ˈrɛn- /

adjective

1. tending to conciliate or promote peace

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonirenical
  adjective
• irenically
  adverb
• unirenic
  adjective
• nonirenic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of irenic

First recorded in 1860–65; from Greek eirēnikós, equivalent to ( eirḗn(ē) ) “peace” + -ikos -ic

Explanation

The adjective irenic describes something that is peaceful. Although you and your sister constantly fought as young children, your relationship might become more irenic as you grow older. The word irenic is from the Greek word eirēnē, which means peace. Eirene was the Greek goddess of peace. She was one of the Horae, or Hours, and she also represented the season of spring, so she is often depicted holding a full cornucopia. Today, the adjective irenic still maintains its peaceful meaning, and governments are continuously searching for irenic solutions to world problems.

Example Sentences

Respond with irenic understanding, and you’re treating her as a patient or a puppet, someone acted upon and controlled by larger forces.

From New York Times • Mar. 15, 2022

The light filtering through the front door toward which Melrose walks is redemptive, the opening bars of Blur’s “Tender,” which accompany him, suitably irenic.

From The New Yorker • Jun. 22, 2018

He was, if you’ll pardon the expression, positively irenic.

From New York Times • Aug. 28, 2011

The tradition of the congresses used to be a militant witness against Protestantism, but the mood of last week's meeting was newly irenic.

From Time Magazine Archive

Cranmer hoped to make his statement irenic; and in fact it contained some Roman and Calvinistic elements, but in the main it was Lutheran.

From The Age of the Reformation by Smith, Preserved