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Synonyms

forgiving

American  
[fer-giv-ing] / fərˈgɪv ɪŋ /

adjective

  1. disposed to forgive; indicating forgiveness.

    a forgiving soul; a forgiving smile.

  2. tolerant.

    The mountain is not forgiving of inexperienced climbers.
forgiving British  
/ fəˈɡɪvɪŋ /

adjective

  1. willing to forgive; merciful

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • forgivingly adverb
  • forgivingness noun
  • nonforgiving adjective

Etymology

Origin of forgiving

First recorded in 1680–90; forgive + -ing 2

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.

But, as it turns out, some messes are too big to leverage even for forgiving eyeballs of reality fans.

From Los Angeles Times

“It’s juicy, it’s delicious, it has a really great texture, it’s just logistically a little more forgiving.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Space isn’t a forgiving place to be stuck.

From Los Angeles Times

Strangely enough, it was not the Germans or the Japanese that people had most trouble forgiving; it was their fellow Dutchmen who had sided with the enemy.

From Literature

This was his way of forgiving me, accepting me.

From Literature

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.