Definitions for gentle
ˈdʒɛn tlgen·tle

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:4.0 / 7 votes

1. gentle, softadjective

   soft and mild; not harsh or stern or severe

   "a gentle reprimand"; "a vein of gentle irony"; "poked gentle fun at him"

2. gentleadjective

   having or showing a kindly or tender nature

   "the gentle touch of her hand"; "her gentle manner was comforting"; "a gentle sensitive nature"; "gentle blue eyes"

3. gentleadjective

   quiet and soothing

   "a gentle voice"; "a gentle nocturne"

4. aristocratic, aristocratical, blue, blue-blooded, gentle, patricianadjective

   belonging to or characteristic of the nobility or aristocracy

   "an aristocratic family"; "aristocratic Bostonians"; "aristocratic government"; "a blue family"; "blue blood"; "the blue-blooded aristocracy"; "of gentle blood"; "patrician landholders of the American South"; "aristocratic bearing"; "aristocratic features"; "patrician tastes"

5. docile, gentleadjective

   easily handled or managed

   "a gentle old horse, docile and obedient"

6. easy, gentle, softadjective

   having little impact

   "an easy pat on the shoulder"; "gentle rain"; "a gentle breeze"; "a soft (or light) tapping at the window"

7. easy, gentleverb

   marked by moderate steepness

   "an easy climb"; "a gentle slope"

8. pacify, lenify, conciliate, assuage, appease, mollify, placate, gentle, gruntleverb

   cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of

   "She managed to mollify the angry customer"

9. ennoble, gentle, entitleverb

   give a title to someone; make someone a member of the nobility

10. gentleverb

    stroke soothingly

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. gentlenoun

   A person of high birth.

2. gentlenoun

   A maggot used as bait by anglers

3. gentleverb

   to become gentle

4. gentleverb

   to ennoble

5. gentleverb

   to break; to tame; to domesticate

6. gentleverb

   To soothe; to calm.

7. gentleadjective

   Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition

   Stuart is a gentle man, he would never hurt you.

8. gentleadjective

   Soft and mild rather than hard or severe

   I felt something touch my shoulder, it was gentle and a little slimy.

9. gentleadjective

   Docile and easily managed

   We had a gentle swim in the lake.

10. gentleadjective

    Gradual rather than steep or sudden

    The walks in this area have a gentle incline.

11. gentleadjective

    Polite and respectful rather than rude

    He gave me a gentle reminder that we had to hurry up.

12. Etymology: From gentil, from gentil, from gentilis, from gens

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. GENTLEadjective

   Etymology: gentilis, Latin.

   1. Well born; well descended; ancient, though not noble.

   They entering and killing all of the gentle and rich faction, for honesty sake broke open all prisons. Philip Sidney.

   These are the studies wherein our noble and gentle youth ought to bestow their time. John Milton, on Education.

   Of gentle blood, part shed in honour’s cause,
   Each parent sprung. Alexander Pope.

   2. Soft; bland; mild; tame; meek; peaceable.

   I am one of those gentle ones that will use the devil himself with curtesy. William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night.

   Her voice was ever soft,
   Gentle and low; an excellent thing in woman. William Shakespeare.

   As gentle, and as jocund, as to jest,
   Go I to fight. William Shakespeare, Richard II.

   A virtuous and a good man, reverend in conversation, and gentle in condition. 2 Mac. xv. 12.

   The gentlest heart on earth is prov’d unkind. Edward Fairfax.

   Your change was wise; for, had she been deny’d,
   A swift revenge had follow’d from her pride:
   You from my gentle nature had no fears;
   All my revenge is only in my tears. John Dryden, Ind. Emp.

   He had such a gentle method of reproving their faults, that they were not so much afraid as ashamed to repeat them. Francis Atterbury.

   3. Soothing; pacifick.

   And though this sense first gentle musick found,
   Her proper object is the speech of men. Davies.

2. Gentlenoun

   1. A gentleman; a man of birth. Now out of use.

   Gentles, do not reprehend;
   If you pardon, we will mend. William Shakespeare.

   Where is my lovely bride?
   How does my father? Gentles, methinks you frown. William Shakespeare.

   2. A particular kind of worm.

   He will in the three hot months bite at a flagworm, or at a green gentle. Izaak Walton, Angler.

3. To Gentleverb

   To make gentle; to raise from the vulgar. Obsolete.

   He to-day that sheds his blood with me,
   Shall be my brother; be he never so vile,
   This day shall gentle his condition. William Shakespeare, Henry V.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. gentle

   Gentle is an adjective that describes a person or action characterized by kindness, tenderness, or mildness. It refers to a soft or delicate approach or manner, displaying a considerate and understanding nature towards others or situations.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Gentle

   well-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble

2. Gentle

   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. Gentle

   a compellative of respect, consideration, or conciliation; as, gentle reader

4. Gentle

   not wild, turbulent, or refractory; quiet and docile; tame; peaceable; as, a gentle horse

5. Gentle

   soft; not violent or rough; not strong, loud, or disturbing; easy; soothing; pacific; as, a gentle touch; a gentle gallop

6. Gentlenoun

   one well born; a gentleman

7. Gentlenoun

   a trained falcon. See Falcon-gentil

8. Gentlenoun

   a dipterous larva used as fish bait

9. Gentleverb

   to make genteel; to raise from the vulgar; to ennoble

10. Gentleverb

    to make smooth, cozy, or agreeable

11. Gentleverb

    to make kind and docile, as a horse

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Gentle

   jen′tl, adj. well-born: mild and refined in manners: mild in disposition: amiable: soothing: moderate: gradual.—v.t. (Shak.) to make gentle.—n. (obs.) a person of good family: (Shak.) a trained falcon: the larva of the flesh-fly, used as a bait in angling.—n. Gentilesse′, the quality of being gentle, courtesy.—v.t. Gen′tilise, to raise to the class of gentleman.—n. Gentil′ity, good birth or extraction: good breeding: politeness of manners: genteel people: marks of gentility.—n.pl. Gen′tlefolk, people of good family.—adj. Gen′tle-heart′ed, having a gentle or kind disposition.—n. Gen′tlehood, position or character attaching to gentle birth.—n. Gen′tleness.—adv. Gent′ly.—n. Gen′trice, gentle birth, courtesy.—Gentle reader, courteous reader, an old-fashioned phrase common in the prefaces of books.—The gentle craft, a phrase used to specify shoe-making, also angling; The gentle (or gentler) sex, women in general as opposed to the stern or sterner sex. [Fr.,—L. gentilis. See Genteel.]

Dictionary of Nautical TermsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. gentle

   A maggot or grub used as a bait by anglers.

Surnames Frequency by Census RecordsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. GENTLE

   According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Gentle is ranked #11627 in terms of the most common surnames in America.
   
   The Gentle surname appeared 2,696 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 would have the surname Gentle.
   
   68.3% or 1,842 total occurrences were White.
   23.9% or 646 total occurrences were Black.
   4.2% or 114 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
   1.6% or 45 total occurrences were of two or more races.
   0.9% or 25 total occurrences were Asian.
   0.8% or 24 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.

Matched Categories

1. • Calm
   • Pet
   • Promote

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'gentle' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3334

2. Adjectives Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'gentle' in Adjectives Frequency: #462

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

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Anagrams for gentle »

1. telegn

How to pronounce gentle?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say gentle in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of gentle in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of gentle in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of gentle in a Sentence

1. Vachel Lindsay:

   Never be a cynic, even a gentle one. Never help out a sneer, even at the devil.

2. Wang Shu:

   The lens focuses on the scenery, sunlight illuminates the interior as gentle breezes filter through it, and our gaze is guided to the mountains far away.

3. Marie Antoinette:

   I have just been condemned, not to a shameful death, which can only apply to felons, but rather to finding your brother again...I seek forgiveness for all whom I know for every harm I may have unwittingly caused them...Adieu, good, gentle sister...I embrace you with all my heart as well as the poor, dear children.

4. Ralph W. Sockman:

   Nothing is so strong as gentleness and nothing is so gentle as real strength.

5. Simone Garcia Johnson:

   You can be wired, as a lot of fathers are, to fix things, just having an expanded capacity to listen and be more tender and gentle really gave me that ability to solve whatever the issue is, but with them compared to for them.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=gentle
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Gentle
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=gentle
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gentle
6. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=gentle
7. ^ Dictionary of Nautical Terms
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26000/pg26000-images.html#:~:text=gentle
8. ^ Surnames Frequency by Census Records
   https://www.census.gov/topics/population/genealogy/data/2010_surnames.html
9. ^ Usage in printed sources
   https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=gentle