different between soft vs liberal

English

Etymology

From Middle English softe, from Old English s?fte, alteration of earlier s?fte (“soft”), from Proto-West Germanic *samft? (“level, even, smooth, soft, gentle”) (compare *s?miz (“agreeable, fitting”)), from Proto-Indo-European *semptio-, *semtio-, from *sem- (“one, whole”). Cognate with West Frisian sêft (“gentle; soft”), Dutch zacht (“soft”), German Low German sacht (“soft”), German sanft (“soft, yielding”), Old Norse sœmr (“agreeable, fitting”), samr (“same”). More at seem, same.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: s?ft, IPA^(key): /s?ft/
  • (Conservative RP) IPA^(key): /s??ft/
• (General American) enPR: sôft, IPA^(key): /s?ft/
• (cot–caught merger, Canada) IPA^(key): /s?ft/, enPR: s?ft
• Rhymes: -?ft

Adjective

soft (comparative softer, superlative softest)

1. Easily giving way under pressure.

2. (of cloth or similar material) Smooth and flexible; not rough, rugged, or harsh.
3. (of a sound) Quiet.
4. Gentle.

   There was a soft breeze blowing.

   • c. 1533, William Tyndale, An exposicion upon of Mathew

     The meek or soft shall inherit the earth.

5. Expressing gentleness or tenderness; mild; conciliatory; courteous; kind.
   • 1815, William Wordsworth, To a Highland Girl

     A face with gladness overspread, / Soft smiles, by human kindness bred.

6. Gentle in action or motion; easy.
7. Weak in character; impressible.
   • 1665, Joseph Glanvill, Scepsis Scientifica

     The deceiver soon found this soft place of Adam's.

8. Requiring little or no effort; easy.
   • 1892, Robert Louis Stevenson, The Beach of Falesá

     Before that they had been a good deal on the move, trekking about after the white man, who was one of those rolling stones that keep going round after a soft job.

9. Not bright or intense.

10. Having a slight angle from straight.

11. (linguistics) Voiced; sonant.
    • 1954, J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

      DH represents the voiced (soft) th of English these clothes.

12. (linguistics, rare) voiceless
13. (linguistics, Slavic languages) palatalized
14. (slang) Lacking strength or resolve; not tough, wimpy.

15. (of water) Low in dissolved calcium compounds.

16. (Britain, colloquial) Foolish.
    • 1621, Robert Burton, The Essential Anatomy of Melancholy

      He made soft fellows stark noddies, and such as were foolish quite mad.

17. (physics) Of a ferromagnetic material; a material that becomes essentially non-magnetic when an external magnetic field is removed, a material with a low magnetic coercivity. (compare hard)
18. (of a person) Physically or emotionally weak.
19. Incomplete, or temporary; not a full action.

20. (Britain, of a man) Effeminate.
    • 1650, Jeremy Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living

      A longing after sensual pleasures is a dissolution of the spirit of a man, and makes it loose, soft, and wandering.

21. Agreeable to the senses.
22. Not harsh or offensive to the sight; not glaring or jagged; pleasing to the eye.
    • 1673, Edward Browne, A Brief Account of some Travels in Hungaria, Styria, Bulgaria, Thessaly, Austria, Serbia, Carynthia, Carniola, and Friuli

      The sun, shining upon the upper part of the clouds […] made the softest lights imaginable.

23. (photography, of light) Made up of nonparallel rays, tending to wrap around a subject and produce diffuse shadows.
24. (computing) Emulated with software; not physically real.

25. (of a drug) Not likely to cause addiction.

Synonyms

• (giving way under pressure): see Thesaurus:soft
• (of a cloth): non-abrasive, fluffy
• (gentle): gentle, light, nesh
• (of a sound): quiet
• (lacking strength or resolve): meek, mild, wimpy, nesh
• (foolish): daft, foolish, silly, stupid

Antonyms

• (giving way under pressure): hard, resistant, solid, stony
• (of a cloth): abrasive, scratchy
• (gentle): harsh, rough, strong
• (acute): hard
• (of a sound): loud
• (lacking strength or resolve): firm, strict, tough
• (of water): hard
• (foolish): sensible

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• mollify

Interjection

soft

1. (archaic) Be quiet; hold; stop; not so fast.

Adverb

soft (comparative more soft, superlative most soft)

1. (obsolete) Softly; without roughness or harshness; gently; quietly.
   • There was a neat hat-and-umbrella stand, and the stranger's weary feet fell soft on a good, serviceable dark-red drugget, which matched in colour the flock-paper on the walls.

Noun

soft (plural softs)

1. A soft or foolish person; an idiot.
   • 1859, George Eliot, Adam Bede Part I, Chapter 9

     It'll do you no good to sit in a spring-cart o' your own, if you've got a soft to drive you: he'll soon turn you over into the ditch.

2. (motorsports) Ellipsis of soft tyre (A tyre whose compound is softer than mediums, and harder than supersofts.)
3. (colloquial) A soft sound or part of a sound.
   • 2012, Sam McGuire, Paul Lee, The Video Editor's Guide to Soundtrack Pro (page 103)

     The expander doesn't really make the louds louder and the softs softer in one step […]

Czech

Etymology

Borrowed from English soft(ware).

Noun

soft m

1. (colloquial) software, program
   • 18 March 1999, CD-R 74min X 80min, Group cz.comp.ibmpc:

     Zajimalo by mne, zda jsou tyto CD schopna pracovat na plnou kapacitu s normalnimi vypalovackami a beznym softem nebo je na ne potreba mit extra vypalovadlo i soft?

   • 19 March 2009, Zalohovaci SW, Group cz.talk:

     Pokud t?ch dat máte víc, pak tím TARem sta?í zálohovat základ systému a zbytek ?ešit zálohovacím softem, kterej umí d?lit archiv na n?kolik pásek.

   • 2 April 2010, gsm modul / telefon, Group cz.comp.linux:

     ma nekdo nejake zkusenosti s takovym zarizenim ci softem kterym to ovladat?

Declension

Further reading

• soft in Kartotéka Novo?eského lexikálního archivu
• soft in Slovník spisovného jazyka ?eského, 1960–1971, 1989

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English soft.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /s?ft/

Noun

soft m (plural softs)

1. (sexuality) soft porn
2. (computing, uncountable) Software.
3. (computing, countable) A piece of software.

Adjective

soft (plural softs)

1. softcore (pornography)

Italian

Etymology

Borrowed from English soft.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?s?ft/

Adjective

soft (invariable)

1. soft (tone etc; temporary (computing))

References

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from English soft(ware).

Noun

soft m inan

1. (colloquial) software, program

English

Etymology

The adjective is from Old French liberal, from Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”); it is attested since the 14th century. The noun is first attested in the 1800s.

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: l?'br?l, IPA^(key): /?l?b??l/
• (US) enPR: l?'b?r?l, IPA^(key): /?l?b???l/

Adjective

liberal (comparative more liberal, superlative most liberal)

1. (now rare outside set phrases) Pertaining to those arts and sciences the study of which is considered to provide general knowledge, as opposed to vocational/occupational, technical or mechanical training.
   • 1983, David Leslie Wagner, The Seven liberal arts in the Middle Ages
   • 2008, Donal G. Mulcahy, The Educated Person: Toward a New Paradigm for Liberal Education ?ISBN

2. Generous; willing to give unsparingly.

3. Ample, abundant; generous in quantity.
   • 1896, in Ice and refrigeration, volume 11, page 93:

     For this reason a liberal amount of piping should be used. If a liberal supply of piping is provided at first, the first cost will of course be greater, but the extra expenditure is called for but once.

4. (obsolete) Unrestrained, licentious.
   • 1599, William Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4 Scene 1

     Myself, my brother, and this grieved count,

     Did see her, hear her, at that hour last night,

     Talk with a ruffian at her chamber-window;

     Who hath indeed, most like a liberal villain,

     Confess'd the vile encounters they have had

     A thousand times in secret.

5. Widely open to new ideas, willing to depart from established opinions or conventions; permissive.

6. (politics) Open to political or social changes and reforms associated with either classical or modern liberalism.

Antonyms

• conservative

Hyponyms

• small-l liberal

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

liberal (plural liberals)

1. One with liberal views, supporting individual liberty (see Wikipedia's article on Liberalism).
2. (US) Someone left-wing; one with a left-wing ideology.
3. A supporter of any of several liberal parties.
4. (Britain) One who favors individual voting rights, human and civil rights, and laissez-faire markets (also called "classical liberal"; compare libertarian).

Derived terms

• neo-liberal, neoliberal

Coordinate terms

• moderate, conservative, progressive, libertarian, centrist

Translations

References

• liberal at OneLook Dictionary Search
• liberal in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
• "liberal" in Raymond Williams, Keywords (revised), 1983, Fontana Press, page 179.
• liberal in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• liberal in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• Braille, Briella, braille

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”), attested from the 14th century.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /li.b???al/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /li.be??al/
• Hyphenation: li?be?ral

Adjective

liberal (masculine and feminine plural liberals)

1. liberal (clarification of this definition is needed)

Derived terms

References

Further reading

• “liberal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “liberal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “liberal” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

German

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?lib???a?l/, /?l?-/
• Rhymes: -a?l

Adjective

liberal (comparative liberaler, superlative am liberalsten)

1. liberal; permissive; allowing personal freedoms

2. (politics) libertarian; liberal in the traditional sense (see usage notes below)

Usage notes

• Liberale Parteien (“libertarian/liberal parties”) in German-speaking Europe are associated with support for free-market economy and small government. These parties most often represent the centre or even the centre-right of the political spectrum. The sense “left-wing”, which English liberal now often has, does not exist in the German word. When used of particular policies, German liberal means “permissive, rejecting legal restraints”. Thus, for example, left-wing parties are more likely to be liberal with regard to abortion, while right-wing parties are more likely to be liberal with regard to arms sales.

Declension

Derived terms

• liberalisieren
• Liberalismus

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch liberaal, from Middle French [Term?] (Modern French libéral), from Old French liberal, from Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [lib??ral]
• Hyphenation: li?bê?ral

Adjective

liberal

1. liberal:
   1. widely open to new ideas, willing to depart from established opinions or conventions; permissive.
   2. open to political or social changes and reforms associated with either classical or modern liberalism.

Derived terms

Related terms

Further reading

• “liberal” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia (KBBI) Daring, Jakarta: Badan Pengembangan dan Pembinaan Bahasa, Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Republik Indonesia, 2016.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From French libéral, from Latin liberalis

Adjective

liberal (masculine and feminine liberal, neuter liberalt, definite singular and plural liberale)

1. liberal

References

• “liberal” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
• “liberal” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From French libéral, from Latin l?ber?lis.

Adjective

liberal (masculine and feminine liberal, neuter liberalt, definite singular and plural liberale)

1. liberal

References

• “liberal” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old French

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Adjective

liberal m (oblique and nominative feminine singular liberale)

1. appropriate for a free person
2. generous; giving

Descendants

• ? English: liberal
• French: libéral

Portuguese

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Pronunciation

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /li.??.??a?/
• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /li.be.??aw/
• Hyphenation: li?be?ral

Adjective

liberal m or f (plural liberais, comparable)

1. liberal, generous, tolerant
2. (politics) liberal

Noun

liberal m, f (plural liberais)

1. (politics) liberal

Usage notes

In Brazil, the political sense of "liberal" is used to describe supporters of economic freedom, like classical liberals.

Romanian

Etymology

From French libéral, from Latin liberalis.

Adjective

liberal m or n (feminine singular liberal?, masculine plural liberali, feminine and neuter plural liberale)

1. liberal

Declension

Related terms

• liberalism
• liberalitate

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From l?ber?lan.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lib?ra?l/
• Hyphenation: li?be?ral

Noun

libèr?l m (Cyrillic spelling ????????)

1. liberal

Declension

References

• “liberal” in Hrvatski jezi?ni portal

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /libe??al/, [li.??e??al]
• Hyphenation: li?be?ral

Adjective

liberal (plural liberales)

1. liberal
2. (US politics) liberal
3. (Argentina, Uruguay) libertarian

Derived terms

Noun

liberal m or f (plural liberales)

1. liberal
2. (US politics) liberal
3. (Argentina, Uruguay) libertarian

Usage notes

In Latin America and Spain, the political sense of "liberal" is used to describe supporters of economic freedom, like classical liberals.

Further reading

• “liberal” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.

Swedish

Etymology

From Latin l?ber?lis (“befitting a freeman”), from l?ber (“free”).

Pronunciation

Adjective

liberal (comparative liberalare, superlative liberalast)

1. liberal

Declension

Noun

liberal c

1. a liberal

Declension

Turkish

Etymology

From French libéral

Adjective

liberal (comparative daha liberal, superlative en liberal)

1. liberal