benign

friendly, harmless

TRANSLATION

benign = freundlich; [med.]gutartig; gütig; liebevoll; ungefährlich benign failure [tech.] = unkritischer Fehler environmentally benign = umweltverträglich benign prostatic hyperplasia = gutartige Prostatavergrößerung

STATISTICS

IN THE PRESS

"When the Prince and Princess of Wales met the Pope (John Paul II) in 1984, things were made a little difficult by the Pope's extremely limited English. At that time, His Holiness's vocabulary did not go much beyond 'Yes' and his all-purpose, beaming, smiling 'Congratulations!'

"Prince Charles took the conversational initiative by remarking, 'It must have been terrible to be shot*.' 'Yes,' the Pope agreed BENIGNLY.

"Moved by the memory of that terrible event - as well as the obvious need for sign-language - Princess Diana put a hand on her stomach and gave a wince*. At this, understanding shone in the Pope's eyes. 'Congratulations!' he beamed."


to be shot = angeschossen
wince = Zucken (vor Schmerz)

Did you
know?

be-nign
adj.

1.    Of a kind and gentle disposition.
2.    Showing gentleness and mildness.
3.    Tending to exert a beneficial influence; favorable: a policy with benign consequences for the economy.
4.    Having little or no detrimental effect; harmless: a chemical additive that is environmentally benign.
5.    Medicine. Of no danger to health; not recurrent or progressive; not malignant: a benign tumor.

Etymology: Middle English benigne, from Old French, from Latin benignus.

Synonyms:

kind, kindly, kindhearted, benign, benevolent

These adjectives mean having or showing a tender, considerate, and helping nature.

KIND and KINDLY are the least specific: thanked her for her kind letter; a kindly gentleman.

KINDHEARTED especially suggests an innately kind disposition: a kindhearted teacher.

BENIGN implies gentleness and mildness: benign intentions; a benign sovereign.

BENEVOLENT suggests charitableness and a desire to promote the welfare or happiness of others: a benevolent contributor.

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS TODAY
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"We are very fortunate to have such a benign company owner, he will do everything to avoid job losses"

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