Did you know?

If you're solicitous about learning the connections between words, you'll surely want to know about the relationship between solicitous and another word you've probably heard before—solicit. Solicitous doesn't come from solicit, but the two words are related. They both have their roots in the Latin word sollicitus, meaning "anxious." Solicitous itself came directly from this Latin word, whereas solicit made its way to English with a few more steps. From sollicitus came the Latin verb sollicitare, meaning "to disturb, agitate, move, or entreat." Forms of this verb were borrowed into Anglo-French, and then Middle English, and have survived in Modern English as solicit.

Examples of solicitous in a Sentence

I appreciated his solicitous inquiry about my health. He had always been solicitous for the welfare of his family.

Recent Examples on the Web Angela Maria Boneschi adored her tall, handsome, solicitous husband. — New York Times, 20 Apr. 2022 His network of contacts is nonpareil; his manner solicitous and genteel; his work ethic fanatical. — New York Times, 8 Apr. 2022 Aktaş was solicitous and fawning with the men, carefully detailing his movements and often asking after their health. — John Beck, Harper’s Magazine , 16 Mar. 2022 Davide, a former chef who had lived in Scotland for many years, was solicitous and sincere; Paolo was an irrepressible free spirit who had traveled the world rescuing dolphins and learning Reiki. — Tom Vanderbilt, Outside Online, 14 Nov. 2019 But some supporters of Ukraine’s pro-Western course have criticized him for being too solicitous of Mr. Putin’s demands. — New York Times, 7 Feb. 2022 Marvelously solicitous employees of Air France assured him that the airline would book them on a flight leaving the next day and cover their overnight expenses. — Kwame Anthony Appiah, The New York Review of Books, 13 Jan. 2022 Herschkopf alternates between solicitous and icy, but both sides read as closed off and unappealing. — Daniel D'addario, Variety, 8 Nov. 2021 The comfort of that table, and the solicitous service tended to it, remain something accessible across France, as distinct as the unctuous yet mineral perfection of a Gillardeau oyster. — New York Times, 28 Oct. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'solicitous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.