Nearby Words
verb (used with object)
1.
to tranquilize or calm, as a person or the feelings; relieve, comfort, or refresh: soothing someone's anger; to soothe someone with a hot drink.
2.
to mitigate, assuage, or allay, as pain, sorrow, or doubt: to soothe sunburned skin.
verb (used without object)
3.
to exert a soothing influence; bring tranquillity, calm, ease, or comfort.
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Soothe
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is kibitz. Does it mean:
| to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly. |
| chat, to converse |
Origin:
before 950; Middle English sothen to verify, Old English sōthian, equivalent to sōth sooth + -ian infinitive suffix; Modern English sense shift “to verify” > “to support (a person's statement)” > “to encourage” > “to calm”
before 950; Middle English sothen to verify, Old English sōthian, equivalent to sōth sooth + -ian infinitive suffix; Modern English sense shift “to verify” > “to support (a person's statement)” > “to encourage” > “to calm”
Related forms
sooth·er, noun
self-soothed, adjective
un·soothed, adjective
Antonyms
1. upset, roil.
1. upset, roil.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Soothe
Example Sentences
- Driving through the beautiful forests and minimal traffic was not enough to soothe my jangled nerves.
- He possesses two qualities that soothe the potential frictions of a schizophrenic career.
- The choice was meant to soothe her party's bigwigs, with whom she has a sometimes testy relationship.
Collins
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
soothe
O.E. soðian "show to be true," from soð "true" (see sooth). Sense of "quiet, comfort, mollify" is first recorded 1697, on notion of "to assuage one by asserting that what he says is true" (i.e. to be a yes-man), a sense attested from 1568.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Word Dynamo Rating For Soothe
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