soothing
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of soothing
Explanation
Something soothing is comforting; it helps calm fears, anxiety, or pain. Cool aloe vera lotion is very soothing on a really bad sunburn, while pacifiers are soothing to screaming babies. The adjective soothing comes to us from the verb soothe, which means "to relieve." So something soothing brings relief and makes you feel better. Soothing music can help you feel more relaxed, while a soothing cup of hot chocolate can warm you up from the frigid cold. And if you fall and scrape your knee? You'll probably wish your mom was there to offer some soothing words and a kiss to make it all better.
Vocabulary lists containing soothing
Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker
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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.
Soothing Hallmark movies commonly feature kindly small-town mayors, but if one were to show off a governor who also runs a Christmas tree lot, he’d probably look like Walz.
From Salon • Aug. 7, 2024
Pharmedica on Friday said it is recalling two lots of Purely Soothing 15% MSM Drops due to problems “that could result in blindness.”
From Seattle Times • Mar. 7, 2023
Soothing scents can also help, says Terrell Smith, a resident physician at the University of Virginia and the founding physician of Spora Health, a telehealth platform for people of color.
From Washington Post • Nov. 28, 2021
Soothing sitar music played softly as Elizabeth Scherwenka asked him to focus on his breathing.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 29, 2018
Soothing to the eye, the eyes, the Eyes, for that’s who this show is for.
From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
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.
