Compassionate — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective verb /kəm-ˈpa-sh(ə-)nət/ (adjective) /kəm-ˈpa-shə-ˌnāt/ (verb) com·pas·sion·ate

Meaning & Definition of Compassionate

Compassionate (adjective)

  1. having or showing compassion, sympathetic
  2. granted because of unusual distressing circumstances affecting an individual —used of some military privileges (such as leave)

Compassionate (verb)

  1. pity

Compassionate (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. having or marked by sympathy and consideration for others

    "a compassionate person by nature"

    similar: beneficent, benevolent, benignant, good-hearted, humane, kind, kindhearted, kindly, softhearted, sympathetic, tender, tenderhearted, warmhearted
    related: attentive, considerate, solicitous, thoughtful, affable, amicable, benign, companionable, comradely, cordial, friendly, genial, gentle, good, good-natured, good-tempered, gracious, mild, neighborly, nice, pleasant, sweet, warm, clement, forbearing, forgiving, lenient, merciful, soft, patient, pitying, tolerant, understanding, altruistic, brotherly, charitable, freehanded, generous, greathearted, humanitarian, liberal, magnanimous, munificent, noble, openhearted, philanthropic, selfless, unselfish, unsparing, anticruelty, cruelty-free
    opposite: atrocious, barbaric, barbarous, bestial, brutal, brute, brutish, callous, cold-blooded, cruel, fiendish, hard-hearted, heartless, inhuman, inhumane, insensate, sadistic, savage, truculent, uncompassionate, unfeeling, unkind, unkindly, unsympathetic, vicious, wanton
    near: ironhearted, merciless, pitiless, ruthless, stonyhearted, inconsiderate, insensitive, thoughtless, uncaring, unthinking, grim, hard-boiled, harsh, heavy-handed, severe, stern, tough, unsentimental, hateful, malevolent, malicious, malign, malignant, mean, nasty, spiteful, virulent, antihumanitarian, uncharitable

  2. having or showing the capacity for sharing the feelings of another

    "a compassionate smile made the refugees feel a little better"

    similar: commiserative, empathetic, empathic, humane, sympathetic, understanding
    related: feeling, perceptive, sensitive, considerate, gentle, softhearted, tender, tenderhearted, warm, warmhearted, benevolent, benignant, bighearted, charitable, kind, kindhearted, kindly, largehearted, magnanimous, clement, lenient, merciful, tolerant, pitying, ruthful, congenial, cordial, friendly, genial, good-natured, good-tempered, gracious, well-disposed, affectionate, loving
    opposite: callous, cold-blooded, coldhearted, hard, hard-hearted, heartless, inhuman, inhumane, insensate, obdurate, unfeeling, unsympathetic
    near: inconsiderate, insensitive, thoughtless, unthinking, aloof, cool, indifferent, uncaring, uninterested, unaffectionate, unfriendly, unloving, merciless, pitiless, ruthless, bigoted, blinkered, narrow-minded, small-minded, brutal, grim, hard-bitten, hard-boiled, harsh, oppressive, rough, severe, stern, tough, ungentle, unrelenting, abusive, acrimonious, disagreeable, hateful, hostile, ill-natured, ill-tempered, malevolent, malicious, mean, rancorous, spiteful, surly, unkind, virulent

Compassionate (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to have sympathy for

    "a gentle soul who could compassionate even the most reprobate of scoundrels and villains"

    similar: ache (for), bleed (for), commiserate (with), condole (with), feel (for), pity, sympathize (with), yearn (over)
    related: care (for), grieve (for), sorrow (for), love, empathize (with), identify (with), tolerate, understand
    near: disregard, ignore, neglect, overlook, dislike, hate, scorn

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Compassionate

The most common words with a similar meaning to Compassionate:

beneficent, benevolent, benignant, good-hearted, humane, kind, kindhearted, kindly, softhearted, sympathetic, tender, tenderhearted, warmhearted, commiserative, empathetic, empathic, understanding, ache (for), bleed (for), commiserate (with), condole (with), feel (for), pity, sympathize (with), yearn (over)

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Compassionate

Words with the opposite meaning of Compassionate:

atrocious, barbaric, barbarous, bestial, brutal, brute, brutish, callous, cold-blooded, cruel, fiendish, hard-hearted, heartless, inhuman, inhumane, insensate, sadistic, savage, truculent, uncompassionate, unfeeling, unkind, unkindly, unsympathetic, vicious, wanton, coldhearted, hard, obdurate

Related Words for Compassionate

attentive, considerate, solicitous, thoughtful, affable, amicable, benign, companionable, comradely, cordial, friendly, genial, gentle, good, good-natured, good-tempered, gracious, mild, neighborly, nice, pleasant, sweet, warm, clement, forbearing, forgiving, lenient, merciful, soft, patient

Near Antonyms of Compassionate

ironhearted, merciless, pitiless, ruthless, stonyhearted, inconsiderate, insensitive, thoughtless, uncaring, unthinking, grim, hard-boiled, harsh, heavy-handed, severe, stern, tough, unsentimental, hateful, malevolent, malicious, malign, malignant, mean, nasty, spiteful, virulent, antihumanitarian, uncharitable, aloof

Word Forms of Compassionate

Inflections: compassionated, compassionating

Derived words: compassionately (adverb), compassionateness (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Compassionate

First known use: 1579

Words & Phrases Containing Compassionate

compassionate leave

Frequently Asked Questions about Compassionate

What does "Compassionate" mean?

"Compassionate" means having or showing compassion, sympathetic. As an an adjective and a verb, it is defined as: having or showing compassion, sympathetic. It has 3 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Compassionate"?

Other words for "Compassionate" include beneficent, benevolent, benignant, good-hearted, humane, kind, kindhearted and kindly. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Compassionate" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Compassionate"?

There are 93 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Compassionate". Common alternatives include beneficent, benevolent, benignant, good-hearted, humane, kind, kindhearted, kindly, softhearted and sympathetic.

What is the opposite of "Compassionate"?

Antonyms of "Compassionate" include atrocious, barbaric, barbarous, bestial, brutal, brute, brutish and callous. Near antonyms include ironhearted, merciless, pitiless and ruthless.

How do you use "Compassionate" in a sentence?

Examples of "Compassionate" in a sentence: "a compassionate person by nature"; "a compassionate smile made the refugees feel a little better"; "a gentle soul who could compassionate even the most reprobate of scoundrels and villains".

Is "Compassionate" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Compassionate" can be used as an adjective and a verb, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Compassionate"?

"Compassionate" is pronounced /kəm-ˈpa-sh(ə-)nət/ as an adjective and /kəm-ˈpa-shə-ˌnāt/ as a verb and divided into syllables as com·pas·sion·ate.

What is the origin of the word "Compassionate"?

First known use: 1579.