tenderness

/'tendənis/
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tenderness

A mother shows tenderness as she bandages her child's scraped knee.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A feeling of gentle concern, care, or affection: A warm, kind, and compassionate feeling towards someone or something, often involving a desire to protect or nurture.
    • The quality of being easily hurt or injured; sensitivity to pain: The state of a part of the body being sore, painful, or sensitive when touched.
    • The quality of being delicate, soft, or gentle in texture or nature: A characteristic of something that is not rough or harsh.
Examples of Usage
  • Noun (Affection/Care):
    • She spoke to the child with great tenderness.
    • His tenderness towards animals was evident in how he cared for them.
  • Noun (Physical Sensitivity):
    • There is some tenderness around the wound.
    • The doctor noted point tenderness in the patient's abdomen.
  • Noun (Gentle Quality):
    • The tenderness of the spring leaves was a beautiful sight.
Advanced Usage
  • "Tenderness of heart": A phrase describing a person's innate kindness and capacity for compassion.
    • Despite his tough exterior, he was known for his tenderness of heart.
  • "With tenderness": An adverbial phrase meaning to do something in a gentle, caring manner.
    • He handled the fragile artifact with tenderness.
Variants and Related Words
  • Tender (adjective): 1. Showing gentleness, kindness, and affection. 2. (Of food) Easy to cut or chew; not tough. 3. (Of a part of the body) Painful to the touch.
    • She gave him a tender look.
    • The steak was remarkably tender.
    • My arm is still tender from the injection.
  • Tenderly (adverb): In a gentle, loving, or careful way.
    • He held the baby tenderly.
Synonyms
  • Affection: A gentle feeling of fondness or liking.
  • Compassion: Sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.
  • Soreness: Pain in a part of the body.
  • Gentleness: The quality of being kind, tender, or mild-mannered.
Related Phrases
  • Point of maximum tenderness: (Medical) The specific spot where pain is most acute when pressure is applied.
    • The examination located the point of maximum tenderness.
Related Idioms
  • To handle/treat with kid gloves: To deal with someone or something very carefully and gently, often due to sensitivity. (This idiom relates conceptually to the idea of "tenderness" in treatment.)
    • After the bad news, we had to handle him with kid gloves.
tenderness

A mother shows tenderness as she bandages her child's scraped knee.

Noun
  1. a feeling of concern for the welfare of someone (especially someone defenseless)
  2. a positive feeling of liking
    • he had trouble expressing the affection he felt
    • the child won everyone's heart
    • the warmness of his welcome made us feel right at home
  3. warm compassionate feelings
  4. a pain that is felt (as when the area is touched)
    • the best results are generally obtained by inserting the needle into the point of maximum tenderness
    • after taking a cold, rawness of the larynx and trachea come on
  5. a tendency to express warm and affectionate feeling