gentilesse
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of gentilesse
1300–50; Middle English < Middle French gentillesse, equivalent to gentil ( see genteel, gentle) + -esse noun suffix
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.
It’s for grammatical consistency, not beauty or gentilesse, for example, that correct English has us say “It was he” instead of “It was him.”
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 3, 2014
Withoute pite gentilesse, Withoute mercy wommanhede, That wol so quyte a man his mede, Which evere hath be to love trewe.
From Confessio Amantis, or, Tales of the Seven Deadly Sins by G. C. (George Campbell) Macaulay
Imitating the examples of his elder brothers who had received the highest polish of English gentilesse and French etiquette he became a polished gentleman in his manners.
From Sages and Heroes of the American Revolution by L. Carroll Judson
For thee have I my nece, of vyces clene, So fully maad thy gentilesse triste, That al shal been right as thy-selve liste.
From Troilus and Criseyde by Geoffrey Chaucer
You look like one of those Frenchified Norman gentilesse, with your smooth locks and gilded baldrick, yet your words are Norse.
From The Little Duke by Charlotte Mary Yonge
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
