- present participle of forgive.
forgiving
Americanadjective
-
disposed to forgive; indicating forgiveness.
a forgiving soul; a forgiving smile.
-
tolerant.
The mountain is not forgiving of inexperienced climbers.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of forgiving
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.
The trustee for the GRATs paid the annuities due to her by forgiving portions of the notes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Courts are sometimes more forgiving of burdens on speech when the real focus of a law is conduct, and when any restriction on speech is minor and incidental.
From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2026
She said the camp teaches children about forgiveness, so she and her husband put that lesson into practice by forgiving the people who took the trailer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
Toast is forgiving of this kind of thinking.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
“Cullen,” he began, “I am so, so sorry that your brother is gone. He was a good one. Very nice and very forgiving and very much like you.”
From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley
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.
