tender

1 of 7

adjective

ten·​der ˈten-dər 

1

: marked by, responding to, or expressing the softer emotions : fond, loving

a tender lover

2

a

: showing care : considerate, solicitous

tender regard

b

: highly susceptible to impressions or emotions : impressionable

a tender conscience

3

a

: easily chewed : succulent

b

: having a soft or yielding texture : easily broken, cut, or damaged : delicate, fragile

tender feet

4

a

: sensitive to touch or palpation

the bruise was still tender

b

: sensitive to injury or insult : touchy

tender pride

c

: demanding careful and sensitive handling : ticklish

a tender situation

d

of a boat : easily tipped by an external force

5

a

: physically weak : not able to endure hardship

b

: immature, young

children of tender age

c

: incapable of resisting cold : not hardy

tender perennials

6

a

: appropriate or conducive to a delicate or sensitive constitution or character : gentle, mild

tender breeding

tender irony

b

: delicate or soft in quality or tone

never before heard the piano sound so tender

—Elva S. Daniels

7

obsolete : dear, precious

tenderly adverb

tender

2 of 7

verb (1)

tendered; tendering ˈten-d(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to present for acceptance : offer

tendered my resignation

2

: to make a tender of

intransitive verb

: to make a bid or tender

tender

3 of 7

noun (1)

often attributive

1

: an unconditional offer of money or service in satisfaction of a debt or obligation made to save a penalty or forfeiture for nonpayment or nonperformance

2

: an offer or proposal made for acceptance: such as

a

: an offer of a bid for a contract

b

: tender offer

3

: something that may be offered in payment

specifically : money

tender

4 of 7

noun (2)

: an often breaded strip of usually breast meat

chicken tenders

also : the tenderloin of a chicken

tender

5 of 7

noun (3)

tend·​er ˈten-dər 

: one that tends: such as

a(1)

: a ship employed to attend other ships (as to supply provisions)

(2)

: a boat for communication or transportation between shore and a larger ship

(3)

: a warship that provides logistic support

b

: a car attached to a steam locomotive for carrying a supply of fuel and water

tender

6 of 7

verb (2)

tendered; tendering ˈten-d(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to make tender : soften, weaken

2

archaic : to regard or treat with tenderness

intransitive verb

: to become tender

tender

7 of 7

noun (4)

obsolete

: consideration, regard

Synonyms

Adjective

• delicate
• fragile
• frail
• sensitive

Verb (1)

• extend
• give
• offer
• proffer
• trot out

Noun (1)

• bread [slang]
• bucks
• cabbage [slang]
• cash
• change
• chips
• coin
• currency
• dough
• gold
• green
• jack [slang]
• kale [slang]
• legal tender
• lolly [British]
• long green [slang]
• loot
• lucre
• money
• moola [slang]
• moolah
• needful
• pelf
• scratch [slang]
• shekels
• sheqels
• shekelim
• shekalim
• sheqalim
• wampum

Examples of tender in a Sentence

Adjective

He gave her a tender look.

She was tender and loving with her new child.

Cook the pasta until it is just tender.

Her wrist was swollen and tender.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The meat is juicy and tender, the rub is spicy and flavorful, and the sauce is sweet and tangy. —Adam Dolge, Southern Living, 18 Sep. 2023

This classic cake has a tender crumb, delightfully crisp exterior and a cinnamon-and-nut swirl through the middle. —Becky Krystal, Washington Post, 16 Sep. 2023

While the documentary is potent and tender, the solo show assumes a more lighthearted tone, spending more time on Shields’s recent past and present. —Alex Jhamb Burns, Vogue, 15 Sep. 2023

Two months after installing them, Helfer, 49, says her scalp started to feel tender and sore, among other unusual symptoms. —Vanessa Etienne, Peoplemag, 15 Sep. 2023

Ever wondered how Little Debbie makes its oatmeal cream pie cookies so soft and tender? —Zoe Denenberg, Bon Appétit, 14 Sep. 2023

When anywhere from 10 percent to 30 percent wheat flour is added, the result is a little more tender and chewy, but not as glutinous and stretchy as noodles made from 100 percent wheat flour. —Yotam Ottolenghi, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2023

The ribbons of beef are perfectly pink, tender and lightly marbled. —Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023

Memory The Bottom Line Tough, of course, but also surprisingly tender. —David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2023

Noun

Along with 18 craft beers — brewed with the aforementioned special ingredient — Superior Bathhouse Brewery has a food menu full of classics, like burgers, soft pretzels, and chicken tenders. —Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 24 Sep. 2023

After a spirited discussion about Raising Cane’s chicken — Flo has a hack that involves mixing tenders with sauce in a cup — the 23-year-old Alabama rapper lets us in on her newest album, Fine Ho, Stay. —Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 22 Sep. 2023

Shot in Bangkok, the clip shows a series of vignettes of couples around the city sharing tender moments, as Sivan breaks out his best choreography for the song’s chorus. —Stephen Daw, Billboard, 20 Sep. 2023

How To Cook Short Grain Rice Short-grain rice cooks up tender and a bit sticky. —Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 19 Sep. 2023

What more could an aspiring NHL tender want than to have goalie legend Patrick Roy behind the Remparts bench? —Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, 15 Sep. 2023

The beef cheek is marinated for four hours, which allows the beef to become extra tender and flavorful. —Charlie Vargas, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Sep. 2023

Since 2020, that restaurant has sold chicken tenders and chicken sandwiches in four spice levels. —Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 5 Sep. 2023

Officials determined that fuel tenders — used to get fuel to vehicles in remote areas — were mistakenly filled with gasoline instead of diesel, or vice versa, the day before, officials said. —Austindedios, oregonlive, 10 Sep. 2023

Verb

If necessary, reduce the heat to reach a low simmer (this will keep the meatballs tender), and cook until the meatballs and rice are cooked through, about 40 minutes. —Alexa Weibel, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Sep. 2023

Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, this side will surely be a crowd-pleaser. —Zoe Denenberg, Southern Living, 24 Sep. 2023

The deal hinges on enough shares being tendered and clearing a federal regulatory waiting period. —Maria Halkias, Dallas News, 14 Sep. 2023

The bagels are crunchy on the outside, tender on the inside and served warm-from-the-oven. 06 Take a Bite Out of 'The Bear' Chicago Is Mr. Beef the inspiration for the family sandwich shop on FX’s The Bear? —Sonal Dutt, Peoplemag, 2 Sep. 2023

Kevin Abena, who runs a fishing business with his father, also relies on tendering to stay afloat in the wake of the crab fishery closure. —Joshua A. Bickel, Anchorage Daily News, 6 Sep. 2023

Their prime target is our roses’ tender new foliage, buds and blooms and the fresh new basal breaks at the base of the plant. —Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Sep. 2023

An offer sheet was tendered, and that offer sheet is the current basis for discussions. —Mike Danahey, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2023

Rebelliously tender Betty transformed the world around her and with her Gaitan found a poignant twist to the Ugly Duckling trope. —Emiliano Granada, Variety, 6 July 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English tendre, tender, borrowed from Anglo-French tendre, going back to Latin tener "soft, delicate (of persons or parts of the body), immature, yielding easily, sensitive," probably by metathesis from *terenos or *terunos, going back to Indo-European, whence also Greek térēn "soft, tender," Sanskrit taruṇa- "young, tender, fresh," Avestan tauruna- "young," (as noun) "boy"

Note: Macrobius (early 5th century), in his Saturnalia, quotes Favorinus (ca. 80-160 a.d.) as claiming that terenus meant mollis ("soft") in Sabine; this form would support the hypothesis of metathesis in Latin tener. Ernout and Meillet (Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine, 4th edition, Paris, 1979) reject this etymology without comment, citing instead a possible connection with the ten- of tenēre, tendere, tenuis (see tenant entry 1, tender entry 3, thin entry 1).

Verb (1)

Middle English tendren, probably in part derivative of tendur tender entry 3, in part borrowed from its source, Anglo-French tendre

Note: The apparent use of the Anglo-French nominalized infinitive as an inflected verb in Middle English is paralleled by render entry 2. Cf. tend entry 1, a more regular borrowing of the stem of the same verb, in a different sense.

Noun (1)

Middle English tendur "grant of a license," borrowed from Anglo-French tendre "offer, offer in satisfaction of a debt," noun derivative from infinitive of tendre "to stretch, hold out, offer (a suit, plea, money), grant," going back to Latin tendere "to extend outward, stretch, spread out, direct (one's course), aim (at a purpose)," going back to Indo-European *ten- "stretch, extend" + *-d- (or *-dh-), suffixal extension of uncertain origin — more at tenant entry 1

Note: See note at tenant entry 1. The original past participle of tendere is tentus, which would appear to continue an Indo-European verbal adjective *tn̥-tos, whence also Greek tatós, derived directly from the base *ten- rather than from *tend-. The form tentus was largely replaced by tensus, presumably from *tend-tos, a regular derivative of the new formation tend-.

Noun (2)

probably short for tenderloin

Noun (3)

tend entry 2 + -er entry 2

Verb (2)

Middle English tendren "to become tender, care for, be concerned about," derivative of tender, tendre tender entry 1

Noun (4)

probably noun derivative of tender entry 1 or of tender entry 6 in sense "to be solicitous of"

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3b

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Noun (1)

circa 1543, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1955, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1675, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (4)

1598, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tender

• tender loving care
• legal tender
• to the (tender) mercies of
• at the tender age
• tender (young) age
• fork-tender
• tender offer
• tender-minded

• tender loving care
• legal tender
• to the (tender) mercies of
• at the tender age
• tender (young) age
• fork-tender
• tender offer
• tender-minded

See More

Kids Definition

tender

1 of 5 adjective

ten·​der ˈten-dər 

1

: having a soft or yielding quality

tender steak

2

a

: physically weak : delicate

a tender plant

b

: immature, young

children of tender years

3

: loving, affectionate

a tender look

4

: showing care : considerate

5

: not harsh or stern : gentle, mild

tender irony

6

: sensitive to touch : very easily hurt

a tender bruise

7

: demanding careful and sensitive handling

a tender subject

tenderly adverb

tenderness noun

tender

2 of 5 verb

tendered; tendering

-d(ə-)riŋ

1

: to offer in payment

2

: to present for acceptance

tendered my resignation

tender

3 of 5 noun

1

: an offer of money in payment of a debt

2

: an offer made for acceptance

especially : a bid for a contract

3

: something that may by law be offered in payment

especially : money

tender

4 of 5 noun

tend·​er

ˈten-dər

: one that tends or takes care: as

a

: a ship used to attend other ships (as to supply food)

b

: a boat that carries passengers or freight between shore and a larger ship

c

: a car attached to a locomotive for carrying fuel and water

tender

5 of 5 noun

: an often breaded strip of usually breast meat

chicken tenders

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English tender "tender, fragile," from early French tendre (same meaning), from Latin tener "having a soft yielding texture, tender, young"

Verb

Middle English tendren "to offer in payment," from early French tendre "to stretch out, offer," from Latin tendere "to stretch" — related to tense entry 2

Noun

from tend "to look after" and -er, noun suffix

Noun

probably short for tenderloin

Medical Definition

tender

adjective

ten·​der ˈten-dər 

: sensitive to touch or palpation

tender skin

a tender palpable kidney

tenderness

-nəs 

noun

Legal Definition

tender

1 of 2 noun

ten·​der

1

a

: an act or instance of tendering

b

: an unconditional offer of payment or performance (as in discharge of an obligation) that is coupled with a manifestation of willingness and ability to follow through (as by producing a check)

c

: tender of delivery

sufficient tender

2

: something offered in payment or performance

specifically : money

the proper amount of tender required

see also legal tender

tender

2 of 2 verb

transitive verb

1

a

: to make a tender of

tender goods

tender delivery

tender payment

tender performance

b

: to offer as an amount in settlement of a claim by an injured party against an insured

Note: An insurance company might be obligated to tender the limits of a policy to an injured party when a higher amount is likely to be awarded at trial.

2

: to extend for acceptance or consideration (as in proof of something) especially in a proceeding

tender a plea to the court

tender an issue

3

: to offer for sale

tender shares

intransitive verb

: to offer securities for sale

make an informed decision to tender

Etymology

Verb

Anglo-French tendre to offer, propose for acceptance, literally, to stretch, hold out, from Old French, from Latin tendere