gentle
Americanadjective
-
kindly; amiable.
a gentle manner.
-
not severe, rough, or violent; mild.
a gentle wind;
a gentle tap on the shoulder.
-
moderate.
gentle heat.
- Synonyms:
- temperate
-
gradual.
a gentle slope.
-
of good birth or family; wellborn.
- Synonyms:
- noble
-
characteristic of good birth; honorable; respectable.
a gentle upbringing.
-
easily handled or managed; tractable.
a gentle animal.
- Synonyms:
- tame, docile, manageable
-
soft or low.
a gentle sound.
-
polite; refined.
Consider, gentle reader, my terrible predicament at this juncture.
-
entitled to a coat of arms; armigerous.
-
Archaic. noble; chivalrous.
a gentle knight.
verb (used with object)
-
to tame; render tractable.
-
to mollify; calm; pacify.
-
to make gentle.
-
to stroke; soothe by petting.
-
to ennoble; dignify.
adjective
-
having a mild or kindly nature or character
-
soft or temperate; mild; moderate
a gentle scolding
-
gradual
a gentle slope
-
easily controlled; tame
a gentle horse
-
archaic of good breeding; noble
gentle blood
-
archaic gallant; chivalrous
verb
-
to tame or subdue (a horse)
-
to appease or mollify
-
obsolete to ennoble or dignify
noun
-
a maggot, esp when used as bait in fishing
-
archaic a person who is of good breeding
Synonym Usage
Gentle, meek, mild refer to an absence of bad temper or belligerence. Gentle has reference especially to disposition and behavior, and often suggests a deliberate or voluntary kindness or forbearance in dealing with others: a gentle pat; gentle with children. Meek implies a submissive spirit, and may even indicate undue submission in the face of insult or injustice: meek and even servile or weak. Mild suggests absence of harshness or severity, rather because of natural character or temperament than conscious choice: a mild rebuke; a mild manner.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
gentlesimple
-
gentlessimple
-
have gentledperfect
-
has gentledperfect
-
am gentlingprogressive
-
are gentlingprogressive
-
is gentlingprogressive
-
have been gentlingperfect progressive
-
has been gentlingperfect progressive
Past
-
gentledsimple
-
had gentledperfect
-
was gentlingprogressive
-
were gentlingprogressive
-
had been gentlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of gentle
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English gentle, gentil(e), from Old French gentil “highborn, noble,” from Latin gentīlis “belonging to the same family,” equivalent to gent- (stem of gēns ) gens + -īlis -le
Explanation
Use the adjective gentle to describe something that is soothing or kind, like a person with a tender nature or the soft sound of light rain. The word gentle traces back to the Latin word gentlis, meaning “of the same clan,” and at first the world was used to describe people belonging to distinguished families, who were seen as courteous and noble. Nowadays you’re more likely to hear the word used to refer to things that are calm, moderate, and without harshness. The word is often applied to people, but it can be used more broadly to describe anything that is mild, such as "a gentle detergent" or "a gentle reminder."
Vocabulary lists containing gentle
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act IV
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Positive Words to Describe People, List 1
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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:
People still marvel at Miyazaki’s handcrafted backgrounds and his painstaking dedication to balancing its feather-light score with the melodies of flowing water or the gentle crunch of a child’s footfalls on grass and gravel.
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026
On Wednesday, the usual bad-tempered jibes and angry exchanges witnessed in the political theatre of the weekly Prime Minister's Questions, were replaced by gentle ribbing.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
Natalie was described "a gentle and thoughtful young woman" who enjoyed reading and was "fiercely intelligent".
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
And in the final pages of the “Farewell Address” movement, the work’s brief coda proves moving in its gentle evanescence.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
But it was summertime, so in a drowsy, lackadaisical frame of mind, Duane followed the shoreline of the Cold, Cold Ocean, paying no attention to anything other than the sound of the gentle lapping water.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
Scientists have been exploring enzymatic DNA synthesis as a gentler alternative because it uses water and more closely resembles the way living cells naturally build DNA.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Colbert’s version is gentler but also the most successful.
From Salon ● May 21, 2026
But it’s equally easy to sidestep that scene entirely and disappear into the gentler world of farm stands, lake swims and small-town New England.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026
That we will glimpse a gentler, healthier Creasy?
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
“Yes, well. I expect you to do a better job next time. A girl gets her life saved, she expects gentler treatment all-round.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Best For: VPN newbies who want the gentlest introduction possible, or anyone who needs quick privacy protection for specific tasks.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2026
Leave it to Kelly Reichardt, who turned Michelle Williams into a seething sculptor with frenemy issues in “Showing Up,” to make the gentlest, most self-deprecating heist movie imaginable.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2025
Ms Darwiche's friends described her as "the gentlest and kindest soul we knew."
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2024
“You have the gentlest voice,” Sonia tells him.
From New York Times ● Dec. 4, 2023
Wickham’s alarm now appeared in a heightened complexion and agitated look; for a few minutes he was silent, till, shaking off his embarrassment, he turned to her again, and said in the gentlest of accents:
From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
Coconut milk gentles the green-chile heat in the thick, creamy sauce.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 10, 2017
Mallory Ortberg: That’s all for this week, gentles.
From Slate ● Nov. 29, 2016
Saturday's conditions at Whistling Straits led to outstanding scores, as gentles breezes off Lake Michigan, combined with greens that Phil Mickelson described as "pristine, beautiful, large and receptive," produced a festival of birdies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2015
Beside a shallow pool at the ring's center, a young woman gentles a skittery gray horse, their reflections glimmering on the water's turquoise surface.
From Time Magazine Archive
Granther knew not how; nor does Denewulf, nor Adiva; nor any of the gentles.
From A Maid at King Alfred?s Court by Madison, Lucy Foster
It seems somehow like he’s gentled us into it with benevolent trickery — as if he’d said, “Look! Over there,” and while we were distracted ripped a Band-Aid off our skin.
From New York Times ● Sep. 20, 2022
On the phone from Britain, Wainwright speaks in quick, declarative sentences, gentled a bit by her Yorkshire accent with its long A’s, round O’s and forgiving consonants, but still quite direct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2019
After nearly 20 years as a gallery destination, and despite a spate of sleek new apartment buildings, it is still nothing but art, and it still feels surprisingly raw — gentrified but not especially gentled.
From New York Times ● Apr. 21, 2011
Luckily, when I arrived here 20 years ago I was already so bitter and twisted from supporting the Boro for three decades that if anything the added sourness and torque have gentled my disposition.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 7, 2010
Fitzsimmons had gentled plenty of miscreants, but he had no answers for Hard Tack.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
Like a grade-school teacher, the matrix provides a physical framework that supports and organizes the cells, gentling and channeling them to harmoniously create a functional tissue.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 1, 2024
Canfield’s debut feature is infused with its own measure of that gentling spirit.
From New York Times ● Jul. 21, 2022
These handling and gentling exercises will essentially be like playing doctor with your puppy.
From Fox News ● Mar. 23, 2022
This gentling spares many vulnerable kids years of suffering.
From Slate ● Apr. 8, 2013
Gradually we drifted off, the whispers of breeze-blown branches and the breathing of horses gentling us to sleep.
From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs
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.
