lenitive
adjective, noun
Forms lenitives
- adjective Analgesic, able to reduce pain or suffering.
- adjective Laxative; easing the bowels.
- adjective (of a person) Mild; gentle.
- noun An analgesic or other source of relief from pain
- noun A laxative.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Latin lēnīt(us) (“softened”) + -ive, from lēniō (“to soften, soothe”), from lēnis (“soft”).
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Having the quality of softening or mitigating, as pain or acrimony; assuasive; emollient.
- noun (a) A medicine or application that has the quality of easing pain or protecting from the action of irritants.
- noun That which softens or mitigates; that which tends to allay passion, excitement, or pain; a palliative.
Etymology [Cf. F. lénitif. See Lenient.]
Etymology [Cf. F. lénitif.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “lenitive”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details