In the fund she is the softest, sweetest, gentlest lady breathing. 实际上她是世上最温柔、最甜、最体贴的女了。
In the past we have tended to see Mr Smith, not perhaps as a shrinking violet, still less as the gentlest and meekest of spirits, but rather as an electric politician. 在过去我们大概没有把史密斯先生看做是一个胆小害羞的人,更没有把他看做是一个最温柔和顺的人,而是把他看做是一个惊人的政治家。
Gentle \Gen"tle\, a. [Compar. {Gentler}; superl. {Gentlest}.] [OE. gentil, F. gentil noble, pretty, graceful, fr. L. gentilis of the same clan or race, fr. gens, gentis, tribe, clan, race, orig. that which belongs together by birth, fr. the root of genere, gignere, to beget; hence gentle, properly, of birth or family, that is, of good or noble birth. See {Gender}, and cf. {Genteel}, {Gentil}, {Gentile}, {Gentoo}, {Jaunty}.] 1. Well-born; of a good family or respectable birth, though not noble.
British society is divided into nobility, gentry, and yeomanry, and families are either noble, gentle, or simple. --Johnson's Cyc.
The studies wherein our noble and gentle youth ought to bestow their time. --Milton.
2. Quiet and refined in manners; not rough, harsh, or stern; mild; meek; bland; amiable; tender; as, a gentle nature, temper, or disposition; a gentle manner; a gentle address; a gentle voice.
3. A compellative of respect, consideration, or conciliation; as, gentle reader. ``Gentle sirs.'' ``Gentle Jew.'' ``Gentle servant.'' --Shak.
4. Not wild, turbulent, or refractory; quiet and docile; tame; peaceable; as, a gentle horse.
5. Soft; not violent or rough; not strong, loud, or disturbing; easy; soothing; pacific; as, a gentle touch; a gentle gallop . ``Gentle music.'' --Sir J. Davies.
O sleep! it is a gentle thing. --Coleridge.
{The gentle craft}, the art or trade of shoemaking.
Usage: {Gentle}, {Tame}, {Mild}, {Meek}. Gentle describes the natural disposition; tame, that which is subdued by training; mild implies a temper which is, by nature, not easily provoked; meek, a spirit which has been schooled to mildness by discipline or suffering. The lamb is gentle; the domestic fowl is tame; John, the Apostle, was mild; Moses was meek.
That reminded me of Horace Silver, the gentlest of jazz pianists off the stand, saying to me years ago when I worked for Down Beat magazine, "You wrote that I play `angular' piano.
'Even the kindest, gentlest man, if pressed and pressed and pressed, will want to bite back,' he said.