soft

A2 · Elementary

adj. smooth and pleasant to touch; not rough.

adj. having a smooth surface or texture that is pleasing to the senses; lacking coarseness.

日本語:滑らか※

“The cat has very soft fur behind its ears.”

“She chose a soft cashmere scarf to protect her skin from the biting winter wind.”

A2 · Elementary

adj. quiet and not loud.

adj. low in volume or intensity; not harsh or jarring to the ear.

日本語:小さい※

“They spoke in soft voices so they wouldn't wake the baby.”

“The soft hum of the air conditioner provided a consistent background noise that helped him concentrate on his writing.”

B1 · Intermediate

adj. gentle, kind, or not strict with people.

adj. characterised by gentleness, compassion, or a lack of severity in discipline.

“The teacher was quite soft on the students when they forgot their homework.”

“Critics argued that the judge was too soft on repeat offenders, claiming the light sentences failed to deter future crime.”

B1 · Intermediate Photography

adj. not bright or shining too strongly; easy on the eyes.

adj. having low luminance or saturation; diffuse and lacking harsh shadows or highlights.

“The restaurant had soft lighting that made the room feel cozy.”

“Photographers prefer the soft light of the 'golden hour' just before sunset to avoid the high-contrast shadows of midday.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate Science Technical

adj. water that does not have many minerals like calcium in it.

adj. describing water that is relatively free from dissolved mineral salts, especially calcium and magnesium.

“It is much easier to get soap bubbles in soft water than in hard water.”

“The installation of a water softener was necessary because the local supply was too hard for the industrial boilers to process efficiently.”

C1 · Advanced Computing Technical

adj. something that is done by a computer program rather than a physical machine.

adj. emulated or controlled by software rather than being a permanent hardware feature.

“The tablet uses a soft keyboard that appears on the screen when you need to type.”

“The system performs a soft reset to clear the temporary cache without cutting power to the hardware components.”

B2 · Upper Intermediate British English · Informal

adj. weak in character or a bit silly.

adj. lacking mental toughness or showing a lack of intelligence; often used to describe someone easily fooled.

“Don't be so soft; you can't believe everything you read on the internet.”

“He was often mocked for being soft in the head, though his friends knew he was simply more trusting than most.”

A2 · Elementary

adj. used to describe drinks that do not contain alcohol.

adj. denoting beverages that are non-alcoholic, typically carbonated and sweetened.

“We served soft drinks like cola and lemonade at the children's party.”

“The bar offers an extensive selection of soft options for patrons who are acting as designated drivers for the evening.”

B1 · Intermediate Countable noun Informal

n. a drink that does not have alcohol in it.

n. a non-alcoholic beverage; a shortened form of 'soft drink'.

“I'll just have a soft, please—I'm driving tonight.”

“The vending machine was stocked entirely with various softs and bottled waters to comply with the school's new health policy.”