caress
n.a gentle touch or a soft, kind way of speaking to someone. It is usually a way to show love or comfort.
n.a gentle, affectionate touch or a soft, soothing manner of speaking. Often used to describe physical gestures of intimacy or emotional reassurance.
“The mother gave her child a gentle caress.”
“He offered a warm caress to the old book, showing how much he valued it.”
“The poet's words were a soothing caress to the weary soul, providing a moment of peace in a world of constant noise.”
“One hour alone, to kiss and caress him.”
From French caresse, from Italian carezza (“dear”), from Latin cārus (“dear”), from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂-, akin to Sanskrit काम (kāma, “love”). Doublet of karezza.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.