mild

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   humble in spirit or manner

   suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness

2. 2
   adj

   Gentle and not easily angered.

   a mild man

3. 3
   adj

   Of only moderate severity; not strict.

   He received a mild sentence.

4. 4
   adj

   Not overly felt or seriously intended.

   I corralled the judge, and we started off across the fields, in no very mild state of fear of that gentleman's wife, whose vigilance was seldom relaxed. And thus we came by a circuitous route to Mohair, the judge occupied by his own guilty thoughts, and I by others not less disturbing.

5. 5
   adj

   Not serious or dangerous.

   I learn that mental retardation is classified in four levels: mild, moderate, severe, and profound.

6. 6
   adj

   Moderately warm, especially less cold than expected.

   a mild day

7. 7
   adj

   Acting gently and without causing harm.

   a mild anaesthetic

8. 8
   adj

   Not sharp or bitter; not strong in flavor.

   a mild curry

Etymology

From Middle English milde, from Old English milde (“mild”), from Proto-Germanic *mildijaz (“mild”), from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to beat, pound, grind”). Cognate with Scots mild, myld (“mild”), Saterland Frisian milde (“mild”), West Frisian myld (“mild”), Dutch mild (“mild”), Low German milde (“mild”), German mild (“mild”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian Bokmål mild (“mild”), Icelandic mildur (“mild”), Latin mollis (“soft, gentle”), Lithuanian malonus (“pleasing, pleasant, kind”), Old Norse mildr.