English
kindly
Pronunciation
  • (America) IPA: /ˈkaɪndli/
Adjective

kindly (comparative kindlier, superlative kindliest)

  1. Having a kind personality; kind, warmhearted, sympathetic.
    A kindly old man sits on the park bench every afternoon feeding pigeons.
    • 1849, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], published 1850, OCLC 3968433 ↗, (please specify ):
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      The shade by which my life was crossed […] has made me kindly with my kind.
  2. (dated) Favourable, gentle, pleasant, tidy, auspicious, beneficent.
    • 1712, Alexander Pope, Messiah:
      In soft silence shed the kindly shower.
    • should e'er a kindlier time ensue
  3. (archaic) Lawful.
  4. (obsolete) Natural; inherent to the kind or race.
    • Book of Common Prayer
      the kindly fruits of the earth
    • an herd of bulls whom kindly rage doth sting
    • Whatsoever as the Son of God he may do, it is kindly for Him as the Son of Man to save the sons of men.
Translations Adverb

kindly

  1. In a kind manner, out of kindness.
    He kindly offered to take us to the station in his car.
    • 1900, L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Chapter 23
      She was both beautiful and young to their eyes. Her hair was a rich red in color and fell in flowing ringlets over her shoulders. Her dress was pure white but her eyes were blue, and they looked kindly upon the little girl.
  2. In a favourable way.
  3. Please; used to make a polite request.
    Kindly refrain from walking on the grass.
    Kindly move your car out of the front yard.
  4. (US) With kind acceptance; .
    I don't take kindly to threats.
    Aunt Daisy didn't take it kindly when we forgot her anniversary.
    When I ask kindly, I don't expect to repeat myself.
  5. (dialectal) Kind of, somewhat.
  6. (archaic) Readily.
  7. (obsolete) Naturally.
Synonyms Translations Translations

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