soft definition | Dictionary.com

soft

[sawft, soft]

adjective, -er, -est, noun, adverb, interjection

–adjective

1.	yielding readily to touch or pressure; easily penetrated, divided, or changed in shape; not hard or stiff: a soft pillow.

2.	relatively deficient in hardness, as metal or wood.

3.	smooth and agreeable to the touch; not rough or coarse: a soft fabric; soft skin.

4.	producing agreeable sensations; pleasant or comfortable: soft slumber.

5.	low or subdued in sound; gentle and melodious: soft music; a soft voice.

6.	not harsh or unpleasant to the eye; not glaring: soft light; a soft color.

7.	not hard or sharp: soft outlines.

8.	gentle or mild: soft breezes.

9.	genial or balmy, as climate or air.

10.	gentle, mild, warm-hearted, or compassionate: a soft, grandmotherly woman.

11.	smooth, soothing, or ingratiating: soft words.

12.	not harsh or severe, as a penalty or demand.

13.	responsive or sympathetic to the feelings, emotions, needs, etc., of others; tender-hearted.

14.	sentimental or flowery, as language: soft, meaningless talk.

15.	not strong or robust; delicate; incapable of great endurance or exertion: He was too soft for the Marines.

16.	Informal. easy; involving little effort; not difficult, laborious, trying, or severe: a soft job.

17.	Informal. easily influenced or swayed; easily imposed upon; impressionable.

18.	lenient, permissive, or conciliatory, esp. regarding something that is conceived of as dangerous or threatening: to be soft on Communism.

19.	(of water) relatively free from mineral salts that interfere with the action of soap.

20.	(of paper money or a monetary system) not supported by sufficient gold reserves or not easily convertible into a foreign currency.

21.	(of a market, market condition, or prices) declining in value, volume, profitability, etc.; weak: a soft tourist season. Compare firm ¹ (def. 7).

22.	(of money) plentiful or available at low interest rates or on easy terms: a soft loan.

23.	soft-core.

24.

Metallurgy.

a.	(of a metal) easily magnetized and demagnetized.

b.	(of solder) fusing readily.

c.	(of a metal or alloy) fully annealed, so as to provide minimum mechanical hardness.

25.

Photography.

a.	(of a photographic image) having delicate gradations of tone.

b.	(of a focus) lacking in sharpness.

c.	(of a lens) unable to be focused sharply.

26.

Phonetics.

a.	(of consonants) lenis, esp. lenis and voiced.

b.	(of c and g) pronounced as in cent and gem.

c.	(of consonants in Slavic languages) palatalized. Compare hard (def. 38).

27.	Military. (of a missile-launching base) aboveground and relatively unprotected from enemy attack.

28.	Aerospace. (of a landing of a space vehicle) gentle; not harmful to the vehicle or its contents: a soft landing on the moon.

29.	Physics. (of a beam of particles or electromagnetic radiation) having relatively low energy: soft x-rays. Compare hard (def. 40).

30.	(of a delegate, voter, etc.) not committed to any one candidate.

31.	foolish or stupid: soft in the head.

32.	(of a detergent) readily biodegradable.

–noun

33.	something that is soft or yielding; the soft part.

34.

softness.

–adverb

35.	in a soft manner.

–interjection Archaic.

36.	be quiet! hush!

37.	not so fast! stop!

—Idiom

38.	be soft on someone, Informal. to be amorously inclined toward a person; have an affection for: He's been soft on her for years.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME softe yielding, gentle, mild, OE sōfte agreeable; c. G sanft

Related forms:

softly, adverb

softness, noun

Synonyms:
1. pliable, plastic, malleable. 5. mellifluous, dulcet, sweet. 10. tender, sympathetic. 11. mollifying. 15. weak, feeble. 17. compliant, irresolute, submissive.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To soft

soft (sôft, sŏft)

adj. soft·er, soft·est

1. Easily molded, cut, or worked.
2. Yielding readily to pressure or weight.
3. Not loud, harsh, or irritating: a soft voice.
4. Not brilliant or glaring; subdued: soft colors.
5. Of a gentle disposition; tender.
6. Affectionate: a soft glance.
7. Attracted or emotionally involved: He has been soft on her for years.
8. Not stern; lenient.
9. Lacking strength of character; weak.
10. Informal Simple-minded; foolish.
11. Informal Easy: a soft job.
12. Based on conciliation or negotiation rather than on threats or power plays: took a soft line toward their opponents.
13. Gradually declining in trend; not firm: a soft economy; a soft computer market.
14. Sibilant rather than guttural, as c in certain and g in gem.
15. Voiced and weakly articulated: a soft consonant.
16. Palatalized, as certain consonants in Slavic languages.
Out of condition; flabby.
Smooth or fine to the touch: a soft fabric.
1. Not loud, harsh, or irritating: a soft voice.
2. Not brilliant or glaring; subdued: soft colors.
3. Of a gentle disposition; tender.
4. Affectionate: a soft glance.
5. Attracted or emotionally involved: He has been soft on her for years.
6. Not stern; lenient.
7. Lacking strength of character; weak.
8. Informal Simple-minded; foolish.
9. Informal Easy: a soft job.
10. Based on conciliation or negotiation rather than on threats or power plays: took a soft line toward their opponents.
11. Gradually declining in trend; not firm: a soft economy; a soft computer market.
12. Sibilant rather than guttural, as c in certain and g in gem.
13. Voiced and weakly articulated: a soft consonant.
14. Palatalized, as certain consonants in Slavic languages.
Not sharply drawn or delineated: soft charcoal shading; a scene filmed in soft focus.
Mild; balmy: a soft breeze.
1. Of a gentle disposition; tender.
2. Affectionate: a soft glance.
3. Attracted or emotionally involved: He has been soft on her for years.
4. Not stern; lenient.
5. Lacking strength of character; weak.
6. Informal Simple-minded; foolish.
7. Informal Easy: a soft job.
8. Based on conciliation or negotiation rather than on threats or power plays: took a soft line toward their opponents.
9. Gradually declining in trend; not firm: a soft economy; a soft computer market.
10. Sibilant rather than guttural, as c in certain and g in gem.
11. Voiced and weakly articulated: a soft consonant.
12. Palatalized, as certain consonants in Slavic languages.
1. Informal Easy: a soft job.
2. Based on conciliation or negotiation rather than on threats or power plays: took a soft line toward their opponents.
3. Gradually declining in trend; not firm: a soft economy; a soft computer market.
4. Sibilant rather than guttural, as c in certain and g in gem.
5. Voiced and weakly articulated: a soft consonant.
6. Palatalized, as certain consonants in Slavic languages.
Informal and entertaining without confronting difficult issues or hard facts: limited the discussion to soft topics.
Using or based on data that is not readily quantifiable or amenable to experimental verification or refutation: The lawyer downplayed the soft evidence.
Softcore.
Being a turn in a specific direction at an angle less acute than other possible routes: a soft right.
Of or relating to a paper currency as distinct from a hard currency backed by gold.
Having low dissolved mineral content.
Having a low or lower power of penetration: soft x-rays.
Linguistics
1. Sibilant rather than guttural, as c in certain and g in gem.
2. Voiced and weakly articulated: a soft consonant.
3. Palatalized, as certain consonants in Slavic languages.
Unprotected against or vulnerable to attack: a soft target.

n. A soft object or part.
adv. In a soft manner; gently.

[Middle English, pleasant, calm, from Old English sōfte.]
soft'ly adv., soft'ness n.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Soft

Soft\, a. [Compar. Softer; superl. Softest.] [OE. softe, AS. s?fte, properly adv. of s?fte, adj.; akin to OS. s[=a]fto, adv., D. zacht, OHG. samfto, adv., semfti, adj., G. sanft, LG. sacht; of uncertain origin.]

1. Easily yielding to pressure; easily impressed, molded, or cut; not firm in resisting; impressible; yielding; also, malleable; -- opposed to hard; as, a soft bed; a soft peach; soft earth; soft wood or metal.

2. Not rough, rugged, or harsh to the touch; smooth; delicate; fine; as, soft silk; a soft skin.

They that wear soft clothing are in king's houses. --Matt. xi. 8.

3. Hence, agreeable to feel, taste, or inhale; not irritating to the tissues; as, a soft liniment; soft wines. "The soft, delicious air." --Milton.

4. Not harsh or offensive to the sight; not glaring; pleasing to the eye; not exciting by intensity of color or violent contrast; as, soft hues or tints.

The sun, shining upon the upper part of the clouds . . . made the softest lights imaginable. --Sir T. Browne.

5. Not harsh or rough in sound; gentle and pleasing to the ear; flowing; as, soft whispers of music.

Her voice was ever soft, Gentle, and low, -- an excellent thing in woman. --Shak.

Soft were my numbers; who could take offense? --Pope.

6. Easily yielding; susceptible to influence; flexible; gentle; kind.

I would to God my heart were flint, like Edward's; Or Edward's soft and pitiful, like mine. --Shak.

The meek or soft shall inherit the earth. --Tyndale.

7. Expressing gentleness, tenderness, or the like; mild; conciliatory; courteous; kind; as, soft eyes.

A soft answer turneth away wrath. --Prov. xv. 1.

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

8. Effeminate; not courageous or manly, weak.

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

9. Gentle in action or motion; easy.

On her soft axle, white she paces even, And bears thee soft with the smooth air along. --Milton.

10. Weak in character; impressible.

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

11. Somewhat weak in intellect. [Colloq.]

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

12. Quiet; undisturbed; paceful; as, soft slumbers.

13. Having, or consisting of, a gentle curve or curves; not angular or abrupt; as, soft outlines.

14. Not tinged with mineral salts; adapted to decompose soap; as, soft water is the best for washing.

15. (Phonetics) (a) Applied to a palatal, a sibilant, or a dental consonant (as g in gem, c in cent, etc.) as distinguished from a guttural mute (as g in go, c in cone, etc.); -- opposed to hard. (b) Belonging to the class of sonant elements as distinguished from the surd, and considered as involving less force in utterance; as, b, d, g, z, v, etc., in contrast with p, t, k, s, f, etc.

Soft clam (Zo["o]l.), the common or long clam (Mya arenaria). See Mya.

Soft coal, bituminous coal, as distinguished from anthracite, or hard, coal.

Soft crab (Zo["o]l.), any crab which has recently shed its shell.

Soft dorsal (Zo["o]l.), the posterior part of the dorsal fin of fishes when supported by soft rays.

Soft grass. (Bot.) See Velvet grass.

Soft money, paper money, as distinguished from coin, or hard money. [Colloq. U.S.]

Soft mute. (Phonetics) See Media.

Soft palate. See the Note under Palate.

Soft ray (Zo["o]l.), a fin ray which is articulated and usually branched.

Soft soap. See under Soap.

Soft-tack, leavened bread, as distinguished from hard-tack, or ship bread.

Soft tortoise (Zo["o]l.), any river tortoise of the genus Trionyx. See Trionyx.

Soft

Soft\, n. A soft or foolish person; an idiot. [Colloq.] --G. Eliot.

Soft

Soft\, adv. Softly; without roughness or harshness; gently; quietly. --Chaucer.

A knight soft riding toward them. --Spenser.

Soft

Soft\, interj. Be quiet; hold; stop; not so fast.

Soft, you; a word or two before you go. --Shak.

Language Translation for : soft

Spanish: blando,

German: weich,

Japanese: 柔らかい

More Translations »

soft

O.E. softe "gentle, easy, comfortable," from W.Gmc. *samfti, from P.Gmc. *samftijaz "level, even, smooth, gentle, soft" (cf. O.S. safti, O.H.G. semfti, Ger. sanft, M.Du. sachte, Du. zacht), from base *som- "fitting, agreeable." Sense of "causing little hardship or suffering" attested from c.1205. Of sounds, from c.1250. Meaning "foolish, simple, silly" is attested from 1621. Adjective soft core (in ref. to pornography) is from 1966. Soft rock as a music style is attested from 1969. Soft sell is from 1955. Soft-shoe as a dancing style is attested from 1927. Soft-hearted first recorded 1593.

Main Entry: soft
Pronunciation: 'soft
Function: adjective
1 : yielding to physical pressure
2 : deficient in or free fromsubstances (as calcium and magnesium salts) that prevent lathering of soap <soft water>
3 : having relatively low energy <soft X rays>
4 : BIODEGRADABLE soft detergent> <soft pesticides>
5 of a drug : considered less detrimental than a hard narcotic soft drug>
6 : easily polarized —used of acids and bases
7a : being or based on interpretive or speculative data <soft evidence> b : utilizing or based on soft data <soft science>

soft

In addition to the idioms beginning with soft, also see hard (soft) sell.

SOFT
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