Basic Details
Word: Gently
Part of Speech: Adverb
Meaning: In a soft, careful and kind way, without force.
Synonyms: softly, tenderly, carefully, lightly
Antonyms: roughly, harshly, violently
How to Spell Gently
Syllables: gent - ly
Tricky part: Gentle drops its le and takes ly, so there is only one l. Gentlely and gentley are common mistakes.
Watch out for: gentlely, gentley, jently
Memory tip: Gentle works like simple and humble: simple becomes simply, humble becomes humbly, and gentle becomes gently.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The nurse gently lifted the baby out of the cradle.
Example 2: Stir the milk gently so it does not spill.
Example 3: The boat rocked gently on the backwaters.
Fun Fact
Gentle once meant of good family, from the Latin gentilis, which is why a well-mannered man came to be called a gentleman.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of 'gently' as it is used in the sentence:
Aarav gently placed the injured sparrow in a shoebox lined with cotton.
a) slowly
b) softly
c) tenderly
d) roughly
Show answer
d) roughly. Lifting a hurt bird roughly could harm it; that is the reverse of gently.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The mahout spoke gentley to the young elephant while scrubbing its back with a coconut husk on the banks of the river.
a) scrubbing
b) gentley
c) mahout
d) coconut
Show answer
b) gentley. When gentle becomes an adverb, its le changes to ly with no extra e.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word:
1. humourous 2. responsable 3. gently 4. suprise
a) something that you did not expect
b) having a duty to look after something
c) funny and making people laugh
d) in a soft and careful way
Show answer
d) in a soft and careful way. Humorous drops the second u of humour, responsible ends in -ible, and surprise has an r after the u.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A newborn kitten should be handled ____.
a) roughly
b) carelessly
c) loudly
d) gently
Show answer
d) gently
2. A doctor who speaks gently to a scared child speaks ____.
a) softly and kindly
b) coldly and harshly
c) quickly and briefly
d) loudly and sharply
Show answer
a) softly and kindly
