amiable

English

WOTD – 6 December 2011

Etymology

From Middle English amyable, from Old French amiable, from Late Latin amīcābilis (“friendly”), from Latin amīcus (“friend”), from amō (“love”, verb). The meaning has been influenced by French amiable and Latin amābilis (“loveable”) (whence English aimable and amable). Doublet of amicable. Compare with amorous, amability.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeɪ.mi.ə.bəl/, /ˈæ.mi.ə.bəl/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Adjective

amiable (comparative more amiable, superlative most amiable)

1. Friendly; kind; sweet; gracious

   an amiable temper

   amiable ideas

   • 1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal, V.i:

     The sums I have lent him! indeed—I have been exceedingly to blame—it was an amiable weakness!

   • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter III, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:

     A short time afterward at the opera Gerald dragged him into a parterre to say something amiable to one of the amiable débutante Craig girls—and Selwyn found himself again facing Alixe.

2. Of a pleasant and likeable nature; kind-hearted; easy to like

   an amiable person

   • c. 1521, John Skelton, Speke Parott:

     My deyſy delectabyll
     My prymerose commendabyll
     My vyolet amyabyll
     My ioye in explicabill
     Nowe torne agayne to me

   • 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter III, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:

     A short time afterward at the opera Gerald dragged him into a parterre to say something amiable to one of the amiable débutante Craig girls—and Selwyn found himself again facing Alixe.

Usage notes

• See amicable.

Synonyms

• likable

Derived terms

• amiability
• amiableness
• amiably
• inamiable
• unamiable

 

Related terms

• amicable
• amity

Translations

friendly as an amiable temper or mood

• Armenian: սիրալիր (hy) (siralir)
• Belarusian: ла́скавы (láskavy), прыя́зны (pryjázny), дружалю́бны (družaljúbny), сябро́ўскі (sjabróŭski), прыя́цельскі (pryjácjelʹski)
• Bulgarian: мил (bg) (mil), любе́зен (bg) (ljubézen), приве́тлив (bg) (privétliv), дружелю́бен (bg) (druželjúben), прия́телски (bg) (prijátelski)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 友好 (zh) (yǒuhǎo), 藹然／蔼然 (zh) (ǎirán), (formal) 友善 (zh) (yǒushàn)

• Czech: přívětivý (cs), laskavý (cs), přátelský (cs)
• Danish: elskværdig
• Finnish: ystävällinen (fi)
• French: aimable (fr) m or f, avenant (fr), affable (fr)
• German: liebenswürdig (de), liebenswert (de), gutmütig (de)
• Irish: grámhar
• Italian: amabile (it), affabile (it)
• Macedonian: љубезен (ljubezen), мил (mil), пријателски (prijatelski), дружељубив (druželjubiv), добродушен (dobrodušen)
• Maori: hūmārika, whakahoahoa, hūmārie
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: elskverdig

  Nynorsk: elskverdig

• Occitan: amistadós, amistós (oc), amical (oc), aimable, gent (oc), avenent (oc)
• Plautdietsch: leeftolich, frintlich
• Polish: przyjazny (pl), życzliwy (pl), przyjacielski (pl)
• Portuguese: amigável (pt), amável (pt)
• Russian: дружелю́бный (ru) (druželjúbnyj), приве́тливый (ru) (privétlivyj), любе́зный (ru) (ljubéznyj), доброду́шный (ru) (dobrodúšnyj), ми́лый (ru) (mílyj), дру́жественный (ru) (drúžestvennyj), ла́сковый (ru) (láskovyj), прия́тельский (ru) (prijátelʹskij)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: љу̏базан, ми̏о, пријатѐљскӣ

  Roman: ljȕbazan (sh), mȉo (sh), prijatèljskī (sh)

• Slovak: prívetivý, láskavý, priateľský
• Slovene: prijazen (sl), prijáteljski (sl)
• Spanish: amable (es), afable (es)
• Swedish: vänlig (sv), mild (sv), varsam (sv)
• Ukrainian: люб'я́зний (ljubʺjáznyj), ласка́вий (laskávyj), дружелю́бний (druželjúbnyj), при́язний (prýjaznyj), дру́жній (drúžnij), при́ятельський (prýjatelʹsʹkyj)

possessing sweetness of disposition

• Bulgarian: симпати́чен (bg) (simpatíčen), мил (bg) (mil)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 友好 (zh) (yǒuhǎo), 藹然／蔼然 (zh) (ǎirán), (formal) 友善 (zh) (yǒushàn)

• Danish: elskværdig
• Estonian: avatud
• Finnish: rakastettava (fi)
• French: aimable (fr) m or f
• German: liebenswürdig (de), liebenswert (de)
• Irish: grámhar
• Italian: amabile (it), affettuoso (it)
• Japanese: 愛想のいい (aisō no ii)
• Macedonian: мил (mil), симпатичен (simpatičen)
• Maori: hūmārika
• Norwegian: elskverdig
• Portuguese: amigável (pt), amável (pt), afável (pt)
• Russian: ми́лый (ru) (mílyj), симпати́чный (ru) (simpatíčnyj), привлека́тельный (ru) (privlekátelʹnyj)
• Spanish: amable (es), afable (es)
• Swedish: vänlig (sv), älskvärd (sv), god (sv), snäll (sv), rar (sv), ljuv (sv), näpen (sv), ödmjuk (sv)

Further reading

• “amiable”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “amiable”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “amiable”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• aimable

French

Etymology

From Old French amiable, from Late Latin amīcābilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.mjabl/

• Audio

  (file)

• Audio (CAN)

  (file)

Adjective

amiable (plural amiables)

1. amiable

Derived terms

• à l’amiable

Further reading

• “amiable”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Old French

Etymology

From Late Latin amīcābilis (“friendly”), from Latin amīcus (“friend”), from amō (“I love”).

Adjective

amiable m (oblique and nominative feminine singular amiable)

1. likable; amiable

Descendants

• Middle French: amyable
  • French: amiable
• Middle English: amyable, amiable
  • English: amiable