GENTLY

lightly, softly, gently

(adverb) with little weight or force; “she kissed him lightly on the forehead”

gently

(adverb) in a gradual manner; “a gently sloping terrain”

gently, mildly

(adverb) in a gentle manner; “he talked gently to the injured animal”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adverb

gently (comparative gentlier or more gently, superlative gentliest or most gently)

in a gentle manner

Antonyms

• roughly

Source: Wiktionary


Gen"tly, adv.

Definition: In a gentle manner. My mistress gently chides the fault I made. Dryden.

GENTLE

Gen"tle, a. [Compar. Gentler; superl. Gentlest.] Etym: [OE. gentil, F. gentil noble, pretty, graceful, fr. L. gentilis of the same clan or race, fr. gens, gentis, tribe, clan, race, orig. that which belongs together by birth, fr. the root of genere, gignere, to beget; hence gentle, properly, of birth or family, that is, of good or noble birth. See Gender, and cf. Genteel, Gentil, Gentile, Gentoo, Jaunty.]

1. Well-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble. British society is divided into nobility, gentry, and yeomanry, and families are either noble, gentle, or simple. Johnson's Cyc. The studies wherein our noble and gentle youth ought to bestow their time. Milton.

2. Quiet and refined in manners; not rough, harsh, or stern; mild; meek; bland; amiable; tender; as, a gentle nature, temper, or disposition; a gentle manner; a gentle address; a gentle voice.

3. A compellative of respect, consideration, or conciliation; as, gentle reader. "Gentle sirs." "Gentle Jew." "Gentle servant." Shak.

4. Not wild, turbulent, or refractory; quiet and docile; tame; peaceable; as, a gentle horse.

5. Soft; not violent or rough; not strong, loud, or disturbing; easy; soothing; pacific; as, a gentle touch; a gentle gallop. "Gentle music." Sir J. Davies. O sleep! it is a gentle thing. Coleridge. The gentle craft, the art or trade of shoemaking.

Syn.

– Mild; meek; placid; dovelike; quiet; peaceful; pacific; bland; soft; tame; tractable; docile.

– Gentle, Tame, Mild, Meek. Gentle describes the natural disposition; tame, that which is subdued by training; mild implies a temper which is, by nature, not easily provoked; meek, a spirit which has been schooled to mildness by discipline or suffering. The lamb is gentle; the domestic fowl is tame; John, the Apostle, was mild; Moses was meek.

Gen"tle, n.

1. One well born; a gentleman. [Obs.] Gentles, methinks you frown. Shak.

2. A trained falcon. See Falcon-gentil.

3. (Zoöl.)

Definition: A dipterous larva used as fish bait.

Gent"le, v. t.

1. To make genteel; to raise from the vulgar; to ennoble. [Obs.] Shak.

2. To make smooth, cozy, or agreeable. [R. or Poet.] To gentle life's descent, We shut our eyes, and think it is a plain. Young.

3. To make kind and docile, as a horse. [Colloq.]

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

19 June 2025

ROOTS

(noun) the condition of belonging to a particular place or group by virtue of social or ethnic or cultural lineage; “his roots in Texas go back a long way”; “he went back to Sweden to search for his roots”; “his music has African roots”


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Coffee Trivia

The average annual yield from one coffee tree is the equivalent of 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of roasted coffee. It takes about 4,000 hand-picked green coffee beans to make a pound of coffee.

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