Meaning of gentle in English

gentle

adjective

/ˈdʒen.təl/ us

/ˈdʒen.t̬əl/

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calm, kind, or soft:

a gentle smile

He's very gentle with his kids.

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

calm and nice to others

gentleShe's so sweet and gentle with the children.
mildHer grandmother is such a kind, mild person.
mild-manneredHe's a mild-mannered diplomat known for his measured responses to crisis.
genteelThey're lovely, genteel people who sent flowers when her father passed away.
wouldn't hurt a flyOh, she's so nice, she wouldn't hurt a fly.

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not violent, severe, or strong:

gentle exercise She had been advised that gentle exercise would help her recovery.

gentle breeze A gentle breeze was blowing through the open windows.

gentle persuasion You can actually accomplish a lot more by gentle persuasion.

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not strong or forceful

gentleA gentle breeze stirred the leaves.
mildThe children just have a mild cold.
softHer voice was so soft, I could barely hear her.
lightThe temperature in London is 24 degrees, with light winds out of the west.
lowKeep your voices low while the baby's sleeping.

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not steep or sudden:

gentle slope The path has a gentle slope.

gentle gradient The easier ski slopes are very short, with gentle gradients.

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slow

slowYou're so slow - hurry up!
leisurelyWe took a leisurely drive along the quiet coast road.
unhurriedI like the unhurried pace of life in the countryside.
gentleStart off with a gentle jog, then gradually increase your speed.

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A bit of gentle coaxing is all that's required and he'll come, I'm sure.
He rocked the cradle with a gentle backwards and forwards motion.
The children rolled over and over down the gentle slope.
She was lulled to sleep by the gentle rhythm of the boat in the water.
Outside the flat, she could hear the gentle wash of the waves on the beach.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Tender & gentle

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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

Slanting, sloping, leaning, tilting

Related word

gentleness

gentle

verb [ T ]

uk/ˈdʒen.təl/ us/ˈdʒen.t̬əl/

to train a horse to be tame (= not wild or frightened of people, and safe around them), using methods that do not hurt or frighten the horse but teach it to trust people:

If you are talking about gentling (sometimes called breaking) a completely untrained horse, you need a professional trainer.

He trains wild horses, or to use the term he prefers, gentles them.

Compare

break verb (HORSE)

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He gentled wild mustangs as a kid in Oregon.
The traditional philosophy behind “breaking in" a horse was that you had to establish dominance by breaking the animal's will, but modern techniques of gentling a horse are more humane and have a goal of establishing trust.
These days, we talk about gentling or training a horse, rather than "breaking" which conjures up images of ropes, whips, and wild-eyed fear.
He is one of several men who help gentle and train wild horses on the farm.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Horse riding

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(Definition of gentle from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

gentle | American Dictionary

gentle

adjective

/ˈdʒen·təl/

Add to word list Add to word list

calm, kind, or soft; not violent or severe:

a gentle smile

a gentle breeze

The path has a gentle (= gradual) slope.

gentleness

noun [ U ] us

/ˈdʒen·təl·nəs/

gently

adverb us

/ˈdʒent·li/

He gently lifted the baby out of the crib.

(Definition of gentle from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of gentle

gentle

Because the temptations and dangers would be minor, the process of soul-making would be gentler and slower.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

How confident he is, or affects to be, about their disinterestedness, their alertness, the range of their sympathies, the use that they will make of the gentlest hint or nudge!

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The person who would obey such a command, under such an understanding, would be simply a monster - no gentle term would describe him.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Imputed, respectively, to the gentle and burgher classes, these paired forms of moral deviance defined the faultline in a social fabric threatened by change.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Her walk in his wake is hesitant: hindered by 'the long shroudings', she is 'uncertain, gentle, and without impatience'.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

If the remedy is homœopathically accurate then it becomes increasingly beneficial as its dose approaches the ideal degree of smallness for gentle action.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The ideal woman is gentle, kind, long-suffering, loving and submits to the demands of men, whether they be husbands, fathers, sons or brothers.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The species shown here is in a crumbly limestone, easily removed with gentle brushing.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The optimum dose individual for each case is the smallest amount needed for a gentle but certain remedial effect.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The seasons can not be made more gentle, yet it remains possible to assert the dignity of people who have to bear their harshness.

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The viral pellet was resuspended in fresh medium by gentle pipetting.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The curve shows a dramatic decline in the probability of leaving unemployment in the first month on the register, followed by a gentle decline.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

She was a severe woman whose forceful ways contrasted sharply with the affable, gentle, easy-going manner of her husband.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Yes, he was a gentle and generous soul.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Two excompetition ballroom dancers who now teach ' sequence ' said, for example, that it is gentler and friendlier, and they criticised the ' cattiness ' of competition ballroom dancing.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

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These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of gentle?

Translations of gentle

in Chinese (Traditional)

文靜的, 和藹的, 溫柔的…

Meaning of gentle in English

Related word

gentle | American Dictionary

gentleness

gently

Examples of gentle

Translations of gentle

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