benign
friendly, harmless
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)
"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
say something like:
"We are very fortunate to have such a benign company owner, he will do everything to avoid job losses"
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
say something like:
"We are very fortunate to have such a benign company owner, he will do everything to avoid job losses"
