amiable
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Middle English amyable, from Old French amiable, from Late Latin amīcābilis (“friendly”), from Latin amīcus (“friend”), from amō (“love”, verb). The meaning has been influenced by French amiable and Latin amābilis (“loveable”) (whence English aimable and amable). Doublet of amicable. Compare with amorous, amability.
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
amiable (comparative more amiable, superlative most amiable)
- Friendly; kind; sweet; gracious
- an amiable temper
- amiable ideas
- 1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal, V.i:
- The sums I have lent him! indeed—I have been exceedingly to blame—it was an amiable weakness!
- 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter III, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
- A short time afterward at the opera Gerald dragged him into a parterre to say something amiable to one of the amiable débutante Craig girls—and Selwyn found himself again facing Alixe.
- Of a pleasant and likeable nature; kind-hearted; easy to like
- an amiable person
- c. 1521, John Skelton, Speke Parott:
- My deyſy delectabyll
My prymerose commendabyll
My vyolet amyabyll
My ioye in explicabill
Nowe torne agayne to me
- 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter III, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
- A short time afterward at the opera Gerald dragged him into a parterre to say something amiable to one of the amiable débutante Craig girls—and Selwyn found himself again facing Alixe.
Usage notes[edit]
- See amicable.
Synonyms[edit]
Derived terms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
friendly as an amiable temper or mood
possessing sweetness of disposition
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Further reading[edit]
- “amiable”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “amiable”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “amiable”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
Anagrams[edit]
French[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Old French amiable, from Late Latin amīcābilis.
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
amiable (plural amiables)
Derived terms[edit]
Further reading[edit]
- “amiable”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Old French[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Late Latin amīcābilis (“friendly”), from Latin amīcus (“friend”), from amō (“I love”).
Adjective[edit]
amiable m (oblique and nominative feminine singular amiable)
Descendants[edit]
Categories:
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Late Latin
- English terms derived from Latin
- English doublets
- English 4-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- English lemmas
- English adjectives
- English terms with usage examples
- English terms with quotations
- en:Personality
- French terms inherited from Old French
- French terms derived from Old French
- French terms inherited from Late Latin
- French terms derived from Late Latin
- French 2-syllable words
- French terms with IPA pronunciation
- French terms with audio links
- French lemmas
- French adjectives
- Old French terms inherited from Late Latin
- Old French terms derived from Late Latin
- Old French terms derived from Latin
- Old French lemmas
- Old French adjectives