different between gentle vs affable
gentle
English
Etymology
From Middle English gentil (“courteous, noble”), from Old French gentil (“high-born, noble”), from Latin gentilis (“of the same family or clan”), from gens (“[Roman] clan”). Doublet of gentile and genteel.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /?d??ntl?/
- (General American) enPR: j?n?tl, IPA(key): /?d??ntl?/, [?d??????l?]
- Hyphenation: gen?tle
Adjective
gentle (comparative gentler or more gentle, superlative gentlest or most gentle)
- Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.
- Soft and mild rather than hard or severe.
- Docile and easily managed.
- a gentle horse
- Gradual rather than steep or sudden.
- Polite and respectful rather than rude.
- (archaic) Well-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble.
- 1823, Walter Scott, Peveril of the Peak
- "You are of gentle blood," she said […]
- 1893-1897, Charles Kendal Adams (editor), Johnsons Universal Encyclopedia
- British society is divided into nobility, gentry, and yeomanry, and families are either noble, gentle, or simple.
- 1823, Walter Scott, Peveril of the Peak
Synonyms
- (polite): friendly, kind, polite, respectful
Antonyms
- (polite): rude
Derived terms
Translations
Verb
gentle (third-person singular simple present gentles, present participle gentling, simple past and past participle gentled)
- (intransitive) to become gentle
- 2013, Kathryn L.M. Reynolds, Garland Roses, Kathryn L.M. Reynolds (?ISBN), page 226
- “She's experienced a horrific and nasty scare and is in a state of shock, but otherwise she's relatively okay.” Conrad replied, his tone at first grim (as he recalled what he'd seen in the family room) and then it gentled to a more doctorial tone as he directed his next comments to his patient.
- 2013, Kathryn L.M. Reynolds, Garland Roses, Kathryn L.M. Reynolds (?ISBN), page 226
- (transitive, obsolete) to ennoble
- c. 1599, Henry V, by Shakespeare, Act IV Scene III
- […] For he to-day that sheds his blood with me / Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile, / This day shall gentle his condition […]
- c. 1599, Henry V, by Shakespeare, Act IV Scene III
- (transitive, animal husbandry) to break; to tame; to domesticate
- 2008, Frank Leslie, The Killing Breed, Penguin (?ISBN)
- Yakima could have tried to catch him, gentle him as Wolf had been gentled, but having two stallions in his cavvy would lead to a different kind of trouble.
- 2008, Frank Leslie, The Killing Breed, Penguin (?ISBN)
- (transitive) To soothe; to calm; to make gentle.
- 1996, William C. Loring, An American Romantic-realist Abroad: Templeton Strong and His Music, Scarecrow Press (?ISBN), page 201
- A hornist, his playing gentled by perspective, is out of sight within the woods, but his notes are heard through or over the murmuring mix of bird song and breeze in leaves.
- 1996, William C. Loring, An American Romantic-realist Abroad: Templeton Strong and His Music, Scarecrow Press (?ISBN), page 201
Noun
gentle (plural gentles)
- (archaic) A person of high birth.
- 2012, Lizzie Stark, Leaving Mundania: Inside the Transformative World of Live Action Role-Playing Games, Chicago Review Press (?ISBN), page 43:
- While actual medieval societies were full of lots of peasants and a few rich and noble gentles, SCA personas tend to be nobles rather than commoners.
- 2012, Lizzie Stark, Leaving Mundania: Inside the Transformative World of Live Action Role-Playing Games, Chicago Review Press (?ISBN), page 43:
- (fishing) A maggot used as bait by anglers.
- A trained falcon, or falcon-gentil.
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affable
English
Etymology
French affable, Latin aff?bilis, from affor (“I address”), from ad + for (“speak, talk”). See fable.
Pronunciation
- (UK, US) IPA(key): /?æf.?.b?l/
Adjective
affable (comparative more affable, superlative most affable)
- Receiving others kindly and conversing with them in a free and friendly manner; friendly, courteous, sociable.
- 1912: James Burrill Angell, The Reminiscences Of James Burrill Angell, chapter ix "Mission To The Ottoman Empire"
- Furthermore, I may say, that the Sultan was always most affable to me in my interviews with him, even when I had to discuss some missionary questions. In fact, I never saw any traces of the difficulties which Mr. Terrell reported.
- 1912: James Burrill Angell, The Reminiscences Of James Burrill Angell, chapter ix "Mission To The Ottoman Empire"
- Mild; benign.
- 1998: Alexia Maria Kosmider, Tricky Tribal Discourse, page 84
- During more affable weather, the four friends congregate outside, sometimes leaning their hickory chairs against a "catapa" tree...
- 1998: Alexia Maria Kosmider, Tricky Tribal Discourse, page 84
Synonyms
- (friendly, courteous): accessible, civil, complaisant, courteous, friendly, gracious, personable
- (mild, benign): benign, mild, warm
Antonyms
- inaffable
Derived terms
- affability
- affableness
- affably
Related terms
Translations
References
- Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “affable”, in Online Etymology Dictionary
French
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin aff?bilis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /a.fabl/
- Rhymes: -abl
- Homophone: affables
Adjective
affable (plural affables)
- affable, amicable, sociable
Related terms
- affablement
- affabuler
- affabilité
Further reading
- “affable” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
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