merciful — showing or exercising mercy; compassionate or forgiving, especially toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm
Part of speech: ADJECTIVE
Definition: showing or exercising mercy; compassionate or forgiving, especially toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈmɜːrsɪfəl/
Example Sentences
- The merciful teacher gave the student who forgot homework a second chance instead of detention.
- My merciful mom didn't ground me for breaking her favorite vase - she just made me do dishes for a month.
- The merciful rain finally came after three months of drought.
merciful
ADJECTIVE[/ˈmɜːrsɪfəl/]
showing or exercising mercy; compassionate or forgiving, especially toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm
The merciful king spared the trembling prisoner's life with a single wave.
MERCY(forgiveness) + FUL(full of) — becoming completely FUL(full of) glowing MERCY(forgiveness), the angel spared the demon in a merciful act.
Stepping out in her beautiful gown, the queen saw the pitiful beggar and made a merciful decision to set him free.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
From Middle English 'merciful', derived from Old French 'merciful', which comes from Latin 'misericordia' meaning 'pity' or 'compassion', combined with the Germanic suffix '-ful' meaning 'full of'.
Breakdown
mercy (from Latin misericordia, pity) + -ful (full of, having the quality of) = merciful (full of mercy, compassionate)
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“The merciful teacher gave the student who forgot homework a second chance instead of detention.”
“My merciful mom didn't ground me for breaking her favorite vase - she just made me do dishes for a month.”
“The merciful rain finally came after three months of drought.”
“Please be merciful - I only ate the last slice of pizza because I thought it was abandoned!”
📚Related Words
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