Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use gentle in a sentence

40 example sentences · adjective, verb, noun

Gentle means tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition. Example: “Stuart is a gentle man; he would never hurt you.”

Examples of gentle by meaning

adjectiveTender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.

  • Stuart is a gentle man; he would never hurt you.

adjectiveSoft and mild rather than hard or severe.

  • I felt something touch my shoulder; it was gentle and a little slimy.
  • Here the stripped panelling was warmly gold and the pictures, mostly of the English school, were mellow and gentle in the afternoon light.1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 3, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC
  • Raj took a deep breath, and reached out to give Armitage the gentlest little stroke.2012, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Ratburger, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBN

adjectiveDocile and easily managed.

  • We had a gentle swim in the lake.
  • a gentle horse

adjectiveGradual rather than steep or sudden.

  • The walks in this area have a gentle incline.

adjectivePolite and respectful rather than rude.

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

verbTo become gentle.

  • But by afternoon the wind gentled and the sound smoothed.1987 October, Charles E. Cobb, Jr., “North Carolina's Outer Banks”, in National Geographic, volume 172, number 4, page 510

verbTo break; to tame; to domesticate.

  • 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

verbTo soothe; to calm; to make gentle.

  • 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

More sentences with gentle

  • If you liked our old shampoo, you'll love the new kinder, gentler formulation.From the entry formulation
  • The flag waved in the gentle breeze.From the entry wave
  • He massaged her shoulders with a gentle percussive action.From the entry percussive
  • The gentle teasing between siblings filled the house with laughter.From the entry teasing
  • With gentle combing, untangle your hair.From the entry untangle
  • Satirical literature can commonly be categorised as Horatian, Juvenalian or Menippean. Horatian satire playfully criticizes some social vice through gentle, mild, and light-hearted humour.From the entry Horatian
  • Unlike traditional surgical methods, laser hemorrhoidoplasty offers a gentler approach, minimizing pain and reducing recovery time.2024 September 3, “Understanding the Laser Hemorrhoidoplasty Procedure”, in adlermicromed.com, archived from the original on 06 May 2025. From the entry laser hemorrhoidoplasty
  • Bowe said mineral sunscreens made with zinc oxide may be gentler on sensitized skin than chemical formulas.2023 December 6, Jessica DeFino, “Too Many Products Can Stress Out Your Skin. Here’s How to Scale Back.”, in The New York Times. From the entry zinc
  • Madou is flat with gentle topography and productive lands located in the heartland of Tainan City.2022 July 28, “Summary of Madou District”, in Madou District Office, Tainan City, archived from the original on 03 Aug 2022. From the entry Cyuanjhou
  • She's a little shy at first but warms up quickly with some gentle pets and snackos.2021 September, “Vanderburgh Humane Society: Animal Spotlight”, in News 4U, EMG Publishing, page 46. From the entry snacko
  • I thought, Oh, Sarah must be one of these super gentle, herbal-tea-drinking, crystal-having kind of people.2019 September 30, Jessica Hopper, Sasha Geffen, Jenn Pelly, “Building a Mystery: An Oral History of Lilith Fair”, in Vanity Fair. From the entry down
  • As I drift off to sleep there's a gentle tapping at my door.2019, Michael Mitchell, Final Fire: A Memoir. From the entry gotchies
  • We have evolved to defend ourselves with a much subtler, gentler approach."2017 June 23, Howard Tayler, Schlock Mercenary, archived from the original on 20 Jan 2024. From the entry first strike
  • The current S-curve includes much gentler bends starting around Randolph Street and ending just before Monroe Street.2016 March 15, Justin Breen, “Remember The Old Lake Shore Drive 'S' Curve? It's Been Gone For 30 Years”, in DNAinfo, archived from the…. From the entry S-curve
  • For gentler sliding fun, you can take a ride on the helter-skelter.2015, Louise Spilsbury, Ride that Rollercoaster!, page 12. From the entry helter-skelter
  • Show your appreciation with a gentle wiggle at the post office when you open your mail.2014 September 2, Myf Warhurst, “Nicki Minaj's Anaconda elevates backside wobbling to a lifestyle choice”, in The Guardian, archived from…. From the entry better for it
  • “I said they are button fly so be gentle please." He said still grinning.2011, Susan Becker, RoseWorthy. From the entry whities
  • His approach to his subjects would seem to borrow something from his gentle couchside manner.2009 March 8, Howard Kaplan, “Analyze This”, in New York Times. From the entry couchside
  • Even the proud gentle Annie, the eldest, could be sneaped by a look, but never John.2008, Ethel Wilson, P.K. Page, The Innocent Traveller, page 6. From the entry sneap
  • My laugh is a light, gentle trill, perfectly tuned to unfret him immediately.2008, Patricia A. Kuess, Slather. From the entry unfret
  • The gentle scratching felt good, so the hyena leaned into the paw.2007, Teiran, The Hero, page 150. From the entry murr
  • A heating pad and gentle stretches are wonderful natural treatments for the pain of menstrual cramps.2007, Lisa M. Chavis, Ask Your Pharmacist: A Leading Pharmacist Answers Your Most Frequently Asked Questions, St. Martin's Press, →ISBN…. From the entry menstrual cramp
  • Speak in a voice of thunder and a voice of gentle breezes.2006, Amber K, True Magick: A Beginner's Guide. From the entry goddessy
  • It is high and, after the gentle slopes lull you, hard to climb.2005 April 9, “The battered face of the Sphinx”, in Sydney Morning Herald. From the entry Toblerone
  • He was smart, tough, witty yet gentle all at the same time.2004, Jordyn Tate, Unforgivable Misconception, page 15. From the entry care bear
  • If they are smooth, they’re more likely to have formed by gentle, fairly random processes.2003, Jim Marrs, Natural History, American Museum of Natural History, page 79. From the entry superwind
  • His gaze shifted from the paddlings of ducks and rested upon a gentle slope opposite the pond.1998, Ge Fei, edited by Jing Wang, China's Avant-Garde Fiction: An Anthology, Duke University Press, Whistling, page 45. From the entry paddling
  • Rare marbles, especially overlays, sulphides, clambroths, and other unusual specimens, need gentle washing and drying.1997, Miriam L. Plans, Caring for your antiques & collectibles, page 94. From the entry sulphide
  • Oyster mushrooms are complemented by onions, butter, mild cheeses, fish, chicken, cream sauces, and gentle herbs.1997, Arleen Raines Bessette, Taming the Wild Mushroom: A Culinary Guide to Market Foraging, page 31. From the entry oyster mushroom

Meaning of gentle

  1. adjective Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.
  2. adjective Soft and mild rather than hard or severe.
  3. adjective Docile and easily managed.

Full definition of gentle

Questions about gentle in a sentence

How do you use gentle in a sentence?
Gentle is used as an adjective, verb and noun. For example: “Stuart is a gentle man; he would never hurt you.”
What is a short sentence with gentle?
“a gentle horse”
What does gentle mean?
Gentle means tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: gentle (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use gentle in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/gentle. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.