merciful

Definition

Showing mercy.

Etymology

From Middle English merciful, mercyful, equivalent to mercy + -ful. Displaced native Old English mildheort.

Example Sentences

• "`Listen, Holly. Thou art a good and honest man, and I fain would spare thee; but, oh! it is so hard for woman to be merciful.'"
• "The murderer, he recalled, had been tried and sentenced to imprisonment for life, but was pardoned by a merciful governor after serving a year of his sentence."