{
    "term": "gentle",
    "partOfSpeech": "adjective",
    "ox3000": true,
    "cefr": "b1",
    "definitions": [
        {
            "senseNumber": 1,
            "definition": "calm and kind; doing things in a quiet and careful way",
            "sensetop": "gentle with somebody/something",
            "cefr": "b1",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a kind and gentle man"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Terry was a **gentle soul**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He looks scary but he's really a **gentle giant**."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She was the gentlest of nurses."
                },
                {
                    "text": "a gentle voice/laugh/touch"
                },
                {
                    "text": "a gentle reminder that your next payment is due on Friday"
                },
                {
                    "text": "He lived in a gentler age than ours."
                },
                {
                    "text": "Be gentle with her!",
                    "contextForm": "gentle with somebody/something"
                },
                {
                    "text": "He was very gentle with the children."
                },
                {
                    "text": "‘Don't worry, just relax,’ Louise's voice was gentle."
                },
                {
                    "text": "He was a young man with a quiet, gentle manner."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The professor gave a gentle smile."
                },
                {
                    "text": "She agreed to come, after a little gentle persuasion."
                }
            ],
            "topics": ["Personal qualities"],
            "collocations": {
                "verbs": ["appear", "be", "look"],
                "adverb": ["extremely", "fairly", "very"],
                "preposition": ["on", "with"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 2,
            "definition": "not strong or extreme",
            "cefr": "b1",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a **gentle breeze**"
                },
                {
                    "text": "the gentle swell of the sea"
                },
                {
                    "text": "Cook over a gentle heat."
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 3,
            "definition": "having only a small effect; not strong or violent",
            "sensetop": "gentle on something",
            "cefr": "b1",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "We went for a gentle stroll."
                },
                {
                    "text": "The doctor recommended a little gentle exercise."
                },
                {
                    "text": "This soap is very gentle on the hands.",
                    "contextForm": "gentle on something"
                }
            ],
            "collocations": {
                "verbs": ["appear", "be", "look"],
                "adverb": ["extremely", "fairly", "very"],
                "preposition": ["on", "with"]
            }
        },
        {
            "senseNumber": 4,
            "definition": "not steep or sharp",
            "cefr": "b2",
            "ox3000": true,
            "examples": [
                {
                    "text": "a gentle slope/curve"
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "pronunciations": {
        "uk": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentl/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentle__gb_2.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentlə(r)/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentler__gb_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentlɪst/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentlest__gb_2.mp3"
            }
        ],
        "us": [
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentl/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentle__us_3.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentlər/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentler__us_1.mp3"
            },
            {
                "pronunciation": "/ˈdʒentlɪst/",
                "audio": "ge/gentle/gentlest__us_1.mp3"
            }
        ]
    },
    "wordOrigin": "Middle English: from Old French gentil ‘high-born, noble’, from Latin gentilis ‘of the same clan’, from gens, gent- ‘family, race’, from the root of gignere ‘beget’. The original sense was ‘nobly born’, hence ‘courteous, chivalrous’, later ‘mild, moderate in action or disposition’ (mid 16th cent.)."
}