forgiving

adjective

for·​giv·​ing fər-ˈgi-viŋ How to pronounce forgiving (audio)
fȯr-
1
: willing or able to forgive
2
: allowing room for error or weakness
designed to be a forgiving tennis racquet
forgivingly adverb
forgivingness noun

Examples of forgiving in a Sentence

a person with a forgiving nature
Recent Examples on the Web This means the impact would be much more forgiving than when your legs hit the ground. Rhett Allain, WIRED, 12 Apr. 2024 The songs swell and retreat, like a forgiving tide, to make room for uncertainty to hug tolerance. Margaret Farrell, SPIN, 3 Apr. 2024 And the early majority is much less forgiving, and pricing is an issue. Olivia Evans, Detroit Free Press, 27 Mar. 2024 Amazon, for example, has a very forgiving and easy return policy. Roger Dooley, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024 Outside Europe, not all countries are quite so forgiving: In Japan, officials have offered bear trappers the equivalent of $33 in exchange for each animal captured following a record number of attacks last year. Billy Stockwell, CNN, 30 Mar. 2024 Blasey Ford is incredibly forgiving of her old-school Republican father, who seems to value propriety — including, ouch, cordially emailing Kavanaugh’s dad after the confirmation — over defending his daughter’s experience. Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Cotton-stretch blend denim is more forgiving than 100% cotton. Dorian Smith-Garcia, Parents, 4 Mar. 2024 Forgiveness, because forgiving is for me, not for the other person. Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'forgiving.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1623, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of forgiving was in 1623

Dictionary Entries Near forgiving

Cite this Entry

“Forgiving.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forgiving. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

forgiving

adjective
for·​giv·​ing
fər-ˈgiv-iŋ,
fȯr-
1
: showing forgiveness : inclined or ready to forgive
a person with a forgiving nature
2
: allowing for human error or weakness
a tennis racket designed to be forgiving
forgivingly adverb
forgivingness noun
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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