compassionate
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.feeling or showing sympathy and concern for others who are suffering.
adj.feeling or showing compassion; motivated by a desire to alleviate the suffering of others.
Simple“The nurse was very compassionate and stayed with the patient until his family arrived.”
In context“A compassionate leader recognizes that the well-being of their staff is just as important as the organization's quarterly targets.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
adj.granted to someone because of a family emergency, like a death in the family.
adj.granted on the grounds of a personal or family emergency, typically regarding employment leave or prison release.
Simple“He was granted compassionate leave to attend his father's funeral.”
In context“The company policy allows for five days of compassionate leave in the event of the death of an immediate family member.”
Synonyms - 03 C2 Proficiency
v.to feel deep sympathy or pity for someone.
v.to feel compassion for or to pity someone. This transitive use is largely restricted to older literature.
Simple“The king began to compassionate the poor man's difficult situation.”
In context“In the classic novel, the protagonist finds himself able to compassionate even his greatest enemies after witnessing their shared misery.”
UsageTakes a direct object.
Synonyms
“At the moment, a person can access their super early under strict conditions, including to pay for certain expenses on compassionate grounds.”
“The children were also described as adept at navigating social situations, compassionate and empathetic.”
A pseudo-Latin form of French compassionné, past participle of compassionner (“feel sorry for”). By surface analysis, compassion + -ate.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.