mildadj.adv.n.¹

Brit.

/mʌɪld/, U.S.

/maɪld/

Forms: Old English–1600s mild (rare), Old English–1600s milde, Old English–1600s mylde, early Middle English mildæ, Middle English melde, Middle English myelde, Middle English myild, Middle English mylþe (transmission error), Middle English myyld, Middle English–1500s myld, 1500s meeld, 1500s miled; Scottish pre-1700 milde, pre-1700 myeld, pre-1700 myild, pre-1700 myilde, pre-1700 myld, pre-1700 mylde, pre-1700 1700s– mild.

Origin: A word inherited from Germanic.

Etymology: Cognate with Old Frisian milde , Middle Dutch milde , melde , milt , melt (Dutch mild ), Old Saxon mildi (Middle Low German milde ), Old High German milte , milti (Middle High German milde , milte , German mild , milde ), Old Icelandic mildr , Old Swedish milder (Swedish mild ), Danish mild , Gothic -milds (in the compounds friaþwamilds loving, unmilds unkind), and further with ancient Greek μαλθακός soft, mild, Early Irish mell , mellach pleasant ( < earlier meld , meldach ) < an extended form of the Indo-European base of meal n.¹

A. adj.

1. Of people, their disposition and behaviour.

a. With reference to a person having power, e.g. a ruler: gracious, clement, merciful, kind, indulgent; not harsh or severe. Now somewhat archaic.

ΚΠ

eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) ii. ii. 100 Gif Agustinus is milde & eaðmodre heortan, þonne is he gelyfed þæt he Cristes geoc bere.

OE Death of Edward (Tiber. B.i) 23 Syððan forð becom..kyningc kystum god, clæne and milde, Eadward se æðela.

lOE Laws of Wihtræd (Rochester) Prol. 12 Ðam mildestan cyninge Cantwara Wihtræde rixigendum þe fiftan wintra his rice.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 483 Þat tyme, Theobald þe mylde [L. pius], eorle of Campania, was in his floures.

a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) v. 1411 Antone the myld off the empire Stud empryoure.

1586 T. Wilkes Let. Dec. in H. Brugmans Correspondentie van R. Dudley (1931) 313 Hoping, as I doe yet, to be hable with myne own letters to persuade sir William to carye a milde hand over that people.

1607 T. Middleton Phoenix sig. I3 Your grace may now in milder sence perceiue The wrong done to vs by this impudent wretch.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 1046 Remember with what mild And gracious temper he both heard and judg'd Without wrauth or reviling.

1725 A. Pope tr. Homer Odyssey III. xiv. 160 So mild a master never shall I find.

1776 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. x. 276 The same prince, who, in Armenia, had displayed the mild aspect of a legislator, showed himself to the Romans under the stern features of a conqueror.

1832 J. A. Heraud Voy. & Mem. Midshipman (1837) ix. 157 This mild prince..is deservedly popular with his..subjects.

1871 G. A. Lawrence Anteros (1872) xx. 177 ‘Pray, gently, on the right’—cries the mild Master, in the act of swattering through a miry pool.

1968 G. Jones Hist. Vikings iv. i. 319 In the first category are the dread sovereign, the ferocious master of magic and wisdom, like Odinn, and the milder sovereign who bestows law and justice, like..Tyr.

1999 S. R. F. Price Relig. Anc. Greeks (2004) viii. 154 But the alleged links between Pythagoras and the mild king who created many of Rome's religious institutions and laws were probably long established by 181 BC.

b. Of God, Christ, or the Virgin Mary (in Christian belief): gracious, merciful. Now chiefly in traditional collocations.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > lack of strictness > [adjective] > lenient

mildeOE

eði modesa1325

easyc1325

sweet1607

lenitive1620

lenient1787

go-easy1901

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > [adjective]

mildeOE

blitheOE

goodOE

well-willingOE

beina1200

goodfulc1275

blithefula1300

faira1300

benignc1320

gainc1330

sweetc1330

kinda1333

propicec1350

well-willeda1382

well-disposeda1393

well-hearteda1393

well-willinga1393

friendsomea1400

well-willya1400

charitablec1405

well-willed1417

good-heartedc1425

kindlyc1425

honeyed1435

propitious1440

affectuousc1441

willya1449

homelyc1450

benevolous1470

benigned1470

benevolent1482

favourousc1485

well-meaned1488

well-meaning1498

humanec1500

favourablec1503

affectionatea1516

well-mindedc1522

beneficial1526

propiciant1531

benignate1533

well-intendeda1535

beneficious1535

kind-hearted1535

well-given1535

affectioned1539

well-wishing1548

figgy?1549

good-meaning1549

affectedc1553

affectionated1561

well-natured1561

well-affected?1563

officious1565

well-inclined1569

good-natured1582

partial1587

graceful?1593

well-intentioned1598

beneficent1616

candid1633

kindlike1637

benefic1641

kindly-hearted1762

well-meant1765

benignanta1782

sweet-hearted1850

the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > nature or attributes of God > [adjective] > gracious

mildeOE

graciousa1375

the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > Mary > [adjective] > kind or merciful

mildeOE

gracious1999

the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > the Trinity > the Son or Christ > [adjective] > according to other attributes

fatherlyeOE

mildeOE

blissful1387

thorn-crowned1609

luciform1862

deific1878

eOE Metres of Boethius xxix. 67 Ac se milda metod monna bearnum on eorðan fet eall þætte groweð.

OE Blickling Homilies 71 Secggaþ Siones dohtrum þæt heora cining cymeþ, milde & monþwære.

OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1900) II. 64 Tatheus..him eallum sæde þone soðan geleafan, and mancynnes alysednysse þurh ðone mildan hælend.

a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 21 Þus mildeliche andswerede þe milde quen of heuene.

c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (1973) 2378 Lauerd, leome & lif of alle riht bileafde; Milde Iesu.

1389 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 47 His mild modir, seynt marye.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 24748 Quen i ma mening o þat mild [sc. the Virgin].

1567 Compend. Bk. Godly Songs (1897) 84 Thow blissit Virgin mylde.

1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 121 Libertie would auaile me nothing, if Christ by his most milde incarnation had not taken away our captiuitie.

1646 Sir T. Browne Pseudodoxia Epidemica viii. 126 This ascetic rule, which held that a saint was disgraced by the very society which his mild Master sought and loved.

a1729 J. Rogers 19 Serm. (1735) i. 5 It teaches us..to adore him as a mild and merciful Being, of infinite Love..to his Creatures.

1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xvi. 526 His [sc. Jesus of Nazareth's] mild constancy in the midst of cruel and voluntary sufferings, his universal benevolence, and the sublime simplicity of his actions and character, were insufficient, in the opinion of those carnal men, to compensate for the want of fame, of empire, and of success.

1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake iii. 136 Ave Maria! maiden mild!

1828 A. Jolly Observ. Sunday Services 156 This mild Majesty of God incarnate..was now about to ascend to heaven.

1896 J. Curtin tr. H. Sienkiewicz Quo Vadis xii. 105 Evidently their God is some curator who is very mild.

1912 Jrnl. Philos. 9 473 Our industrial barons..are practising an undiluted ethics of power and ruthlessness, and professing the mild and sacrificial ethics of Jesus.

1993 United Church Observer June 47/3 We cannot blink the fact that gentle Jesus meek and mild was so stiff in His opinions and so inflammatory in His language that He was thrown out of church, [etc.].

†c. With to or (in early use) dative; (occasionally) with with. Obsolete.

ΚΠ

eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iv. xxxii. 380 Þa dyde he, swa he on his mode gehogde, &..wæs Dryhten biddende, þæt he him arfæst & milde wære.

OE Blickling Homilies 47 God biþ milde þæm monnum þe..on hine gelefaþ.

OE Ælfric Homily: Sermo ad Populum (Corpus Cambr. 188) in J. C. Pope Homilies of Ælfric (1967) I. 434 Þonne sitt se Hælend on his heofonlican ðrymsetle,..milde þam godum.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 8254 Loc nu ȝiff crisstene king. Birrþ beon rihhtwis & milde. & god wiþþ all hiss follc.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) 14802 He [sc. Vortimer] wes milde ælche cnafe.

c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) 1775 (MED) Wið heore cunne heo beoþ mildre.

a1425 (c1300) Assumption of Virgin (BL Add.) (1901) l. 888 For oure ladi hure schal be mylde.

a1450 (?a1390) J. Mirk Instr. Parish Priests (Claud.) (1974) 29 In worde and dede þou moste be mylde Bothe to mon and to chylde.

1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 70 Yet is he milde to those that aske forgiuenesse.

1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 58 They erect a stone over the head of the deceased, to serve for a seat to the Angels who are to examine him, that they may be the milder to him.

d. Gentle and conciliatory in character, disposition, or behaviour; not easily provoked; not giving offence to others; not rough or fierce in manners. Of manners, behaviour, etc.: gentle, conciliatory.In later use sometimes used with disparaging implication of weakness.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [adjective]

stillc825

tamec888

mildeOE

lithea1000

daftc1000

meekc1325

lambishc1374

meeklyc1375

benign1377

temperatec1380

quieta1382

gall-lessa1398

mansuetea1425

meeta1425

unwrathful1542

rageless1578

lamb-like?1592

mildya1603

milky1602

pigeon-livered1604

placid1614

spleenless?1615

passive1616

unprovokable1646

milken1648

uncaptious1661

stomachless1727

unindignant1789

pianoa1817

ireless1829

unquarrelsome1830

quiet-goinga1835

uncholeric1834

unoffendable1839

baby-milda1845

quiet-tempered1846

turtlish1855

pathic1857

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adjective]

stillc825

tamec888

nesheOE

mildeOE

softOE

lithea1000

daftc1000

methefulOE

sefteOE

meekc1175

benign1377

pleasablea1382

mytha1400

tendera1400

unfelona1400

mansuetea1425

meeta1425

gentlec1450

moy1487

placablea1522

facile1539

effeminate1594

silver1596

mildya1603

unmalicious1605

uncruel1611

maliceless1614

tender-hefteda1616

unpersecutive1664

baby-milda1845

rose water1855

turtlish1855

unvindictive1857

soft-boiled1859

tenderful1901

soft-lining1967

eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iv. xxviii. 360 Ðæt mynster þa heold..Eata biscop, se wæs milde wer & monðwære.

OE Guthlac A 739 Swa þæt milde mod wið moncynnes dreamum gedælde.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 2938 Milde he [sc. Joseph] wass..I þatt he nollde wreȝenn. Þatt wimmann.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 173 And þere ynne beþ more mylde peple [L. quæ gentem habet magis piam, contrasted with feras gentes].

c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. x. 83 (MED) Drede is such a Mayster Þat he makeþ Men Meoke and Mylde of heore speche.

Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 337 Myyld, and buxum, Pius..supplex.

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 776/1 I have knowen hym a heedye felowe, but he is waxen mylde nowe: je lay congneu vng testart, mays il se est bien humylié mayntenant.

1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene v. xii. sig. Z Most bitter wordes they spake..That they the mildest man aliue would make Forget his patience.

1647 J. Howell New Vol. of Lett. 129 A harsh mother may bring forth sometimes a mild daughter.

1720 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad VI. xxiv. 963 In whom the Gods had join'd The mildest Manners with the bravest Mind.

1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility I. x. 116 His manners, though serious, were mild .

a1862 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilisation Eng. (1873) III. ii. 53 The mildest spirit might well have been roused by this.

1922 F. M. Ford Let. 15 Aug. (1965) 144 It is really too much to expect the very mildest of men to aid in sharpening a pen whose sole occupation is the describing of himself as, let us say, maquereau.

1961 J. Heller Catch-22 xv. 144 The inoffensive joint squadron operations officers, were both mild, soft-spoken men of less than middle height.

1999 Independent 1 Dec. i. 8/3 Mr Brown is an equable fellow—meek and mild, even when the insults are spattering him like manure from a muck-spreader.

e. Of language or speech: gentle, moderate, measured. Of appearance or mien: kindly, pleasant, placid.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adjective] > of actions or language

mildOE

lithefullc1275

mildlyc1275

faira1300

unmalicious1605

OE Beowulf 1172 Þu on sælum wes,..ond to Geatum spræc mildum wordum.

OE Paris Psalter (1932) lviii. 7 Efne hi habbað on muðe milde spræce, is him on welerum wrað sweord and scearp.

a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 123 (MED) Þe ilke louerd..lokeð of heuene to men mid his milde egen.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 45 (MED) Þa onswerede him drihten mildere steuene.

c1330 (?a1300) Arthour & Merlin (Auch.) (1973) 2655 (MED) Pray Antour wiþ wordes milde Þe milke he ȝiue to þi childe.

a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) 1013 Hure voys was bothe myelde & swete.

1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 36 With such mylde aunsweres he put off the tyme.

1579 T. North tr. Plutarch Liues 648 His speeche was not harsh nor churlishe, but very mylde and pleasaunt, as appeareth by the letters he wrote.

1635 in W. Foster Court Minutes E. India Company (1907) 115 Wherein hee shall find any harsh or bitter language, to sweeten the same in a more mild and gentle phrase.

1771 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. xlix. 184 But this language is too mild for the occasion.

1797 Encycl. Brit. XI. 759 Their features are extremely mild and pleasing.

1813 P. B. Shelley Queen Mab iii. 39 His mild eye beams benevolence no more.

1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xxii. 754 If he sometimes stooped to be a villain—for no milder word will come up to the truth.

1932 W. Faulkner Light in August xiii. 280 The two dogs..two gaunt and cringing phantoms whose droopeared and mild faces gazed with sad abjectness about at the weary, pale faces of man.

1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day ii. 43 The mild, rather beautiful face is shadowed by a perfectly enormous hat.

2000 Daily Tel. 29 Mar. 29/3 In response to a question, he protested undemonstratively and in mild terms about the out-of-touch presentation of Germany and Germans in much of our media.

f. In proverbial similes: as mild as a dove, as mild as May, as mild as milk, etc.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > meek or mild [phrase]

as mild as a dove1599

as mild as May1709

as mild as milk1874

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > gentle or mild [phrase]

as mild as a dove1599

as mild as May1709

as mild as milk1874

OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. x. 16 Estote ergo prudentes sicut serpentes et simplices sicut columbae : wosas ge forðon hogo suæ nedro & bliðo uel mildo suæ culfre.

OE tr. Chrodegang of Metz Regula Canonicorum (Corpus Cambr. 191) viii. 189 Hi beon swa snottre swa næddran and swa milde swa culfran.

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 626/2 Whan he is angryest of all I can make hym as mylde as a lambe.

1599 W. Shakespeare et al. Passionate Pilgrime (new ed.) sig. B Faire is my loue, but not so faire as fickle. Milde as a Doue, but neither true nor trustie.

1709 A. Pope Spring in Poet. Misc.: 6th Pt. 728 Sylvia's like Autumn ripe, yet mild as May.

1772 W. Jones Poems 118 Two lovely daughters were his dearest care; Both mild as May, and both as April fair.

1798 J. S. Murray Traveller Returned ii. i. 129 She looked as mild as a lamb, and she was not bigger than a good stout yearling; but, for all that, she had spurits to the back bone.

1843 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit (1844) xxx 363 Still Mr Pecksniff led her calmly on, and looked as mild as any lamb that ever pastured in the fields.

1874 T. Hardy Far from Madding Crowd I. iv. 42 A temper as mild as milk.

1927 J. Buchan Witch Wood xxi. 366 Johnnie said he sat yestreen at Kirk Aller wi' a face like a corp and took his paiks as mild as a wean, and him for ordinar' sic an ettercap.

1962 Washington Daily News 1 Aug. 29/6 He was mild as milk in the civil rights fight over the literacy bill last spring. It got licked.

1998 USA Today (Electronic ed.) 7 Oct. a21 Conversely, some men are mild as milk, others depressive, still others cling to the belief that you never hit a woman, ever.

g. Of a controlling or ruling influence, a law, a punishment, etc.: not strict or harsh; moderate in severity; clement. Frequently in comparative use.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > lack of strictness > [adjective]

largeda1382

softc1405

largea1450

laxc1450

remissa1500

milda1530

gentle1533

slender1577

relax1609

unconstraining1644

unoppressive1648

inoppressive1661

unaustere1741

undespotic1821

light-touch1949

a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) v. l. 3748 To chawng..His decrete in myldare lawe.

1577 H. I. tr. H. Bullinger 50 Godlie Serm. I. ii. viii. sig. M.viii^v/1 But this kind of quieting and setting parties at one, is verie myld in comparison of reuengement and punishment.

a1645 E. Waller At Pens-hurst i. 44 Ah! cruel Nymph!..her humble swaine..from the winds and tempests doth expect A milder fate then from her cold neglect!

1673 J. Milton Sonnets xvi, in Poems (new ed.) 59 Who best Bear his milde yoak, they serve him best.

1784 A. Smith Inq. Wealth of Nations (ed. 3) II. iv. viii. 496 The penalties..imposed by this milder statute.

1825 T. B. Macaulay Milton in Edinb. Rev. Aug. 325 But..why not adopt milder measures?

1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. 72 The South..was put under the milder rule of the Bishop.

1904 H. Adams Mont-Saint-Michel & Chartres i. 11 But the eleventh century was not very strict, and the rule of the Benedictines was always mild, until the Cistercians and Saint Bernard stiffened its discipline.

1985 A. Brookner Family & Friends vi. 75 A mild and subtle influence compounded of glancing opinions, smiling obliquities, tender and persuasive flatteries.

h. Of behaviour: half-hearted; not keenly felt or seriously intended. Of (usually negative) attitudes, feelings, or expressions: tempered, not powerful or excessive. Of a person's attributes, characteristics, etc.: moderate, slight; not marked or extreme.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adjective] > not vigorous or lively > not vigorous enough or as expected

slack1398

laxc1450

mild1612

1612 T. Taylor Αρχὴν Ἁπάντων: Comm. Epist. Paul to Titus 119 By mild reproofes they rather cocker and beare them in their sinnes, then correct them.

1694 T. D'Urfey Comical Hist. Don Quixote: Pt. 2nd Ep. Ded. sig. A^v But by your mild reproof his faults discerne; Made fit for Fame, if not to proud to learn.

1796 S. T. Coleridge Effusion xxxv in Poems Var. Subj. 99 But thy more serious eye a mild reproof Darts, O belovéd Woman.

1832 Ld. Tennyson All Good Things have not kept Aloof 3 I have not lacked thy mild reproof, Nor golden largess of thy praise.

1885 Sat. Rev. 7 Feb. 166/1 Most of us have no wish to cheat railway Companies by travelling first class at third-class prices, but there are ingenious adventurers who practise this mild swindle.

1886 Pall Mall Gaz. 2 Oct. 3 A mild attempt to anarchize English grammar.

1921 Amer. Woman Jan. 14/2 It was a rare dissipation for her, this mild pleasure, but she has spent a miserable, sleepless night, and it seemed that she must get away. An invitation to the fair in the neighboring city offered her some chance for relief.

1940 K. A. Porter Let. 4 May (1990) iv. 176 Your mild accusation of sentimentality in certain stories, or passages perhaps, struck me rather sharply.

1961 I. Fleming Thunderball xi. 114 A scar down his right cheek showed pale against a tan so mild that he must have only recently come to the Island.

1985 P. Trudgill & J. Hannah Internat. Eng. (ed. 2) ii. 16 This variation may be described as involving—as far as pronunciation is concerned—‘mild’ and ‘broad’ accents.

1992 Philadelphia Inquirer 11 Oct. a28/2 In recent years, as the Mexican press began to air some mild criticism of the government, some newspapers began refusing to accept government favors.

a. Of an animal: tame, gentle; not wild or fierce. Also (occasionally) of landscape or other natural features. Now rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > animals > domestic animal > [adjective]

tamec888

mildOE

meekc1175

privy1340

unwilda1400

familiar1483

gentle?1531

domestical1562

inward1575

inwards1575

housal1611

domestic1620

cicurated1646

domesticated1802

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > animal keeping practices general > [adjective] > tamed or trained

tamec888

mildOE

meekc1175

unwilda1400

chastisedc1440

reclaimed1440

made1474

familiar1483

gentle?1531

domestical1562

inward1575

inwards1575

housal1611

domestic1620

cicurated1646

domiciliated1782

domesticated1802

broken1805

hand-tamed1932

OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 1 Nov. 245 Ða wæron him ða hundas milde for Godes egesan.

OE St. Mary of Egypt (Julius) (2002) 118 Seo leo in þæt inran westen [gewat], swa swa þæt mildeste lamb.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1313 Lamb iss soffte. & stille deor & meoc. & milde.

c1300 St. James Great (Laud) 183 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 39 (MED) Þe Bollokes and þe ȝoungue steores, þat weren er so wilde, Anon so huy touward heom come, huy woxen tame and milde.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) Prol. 1058 (MED) He the bestes wilde Made of his note tame and milde.

c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xv. 275 (MED) Egydie after an hynde cryede, And þorw þe mylke of þat mylde best þe man was susteyned.

1495 Trevisa's Bartholomeus De Proprietatibus Rerum (de Worde) 416 Culuoures ben mylde byrdes & meke. and haunte and loue company of men.

a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1897–1973) 270 (MED) Alas, my lam so mylde, whi will thou fare me fro.

1582 S. Batman Vppon Bartholome, De Proprietatibus Rerum 396 A hen is a mild bird about chickens.

1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd i. 310 Among wild Beasts: they at his sight grew mild .

1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth IV. 254 Mild, peaceful, and brave, it [sc. the elephant] never abuses its power or its strength.

1801 J. Jones tr. T. Bugge Trav. French Republic viii. 154 The menagerie seems to be separated into two parts, the one for mild animals, and the other for wild and ferocious.

1818 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Canto IV lxvii. 36 Upon a mild declivity of hill.

1823 Ld. Byron Island ii. xx. 43 For even the mildest woods will have their thorn.

1840 Penny Cycl. XVIII. 476/1 The Kinkajou is very mild in captivity.

1940 Harvard Jrnl. Asiatic Stud. 5 90 The dragons are wild and ferocious, clawed and perhaps horned, and not at all the mild, gentle animal of the mirrors.

1982 A. Brookner Providence (1985) vii. 80 The mild country opened out on either side.

1983 R. Narayan Tiger for Malgudi 76 The poor goat..was mild and inoffensive.

†b. Of a plant: cultivated, not wild. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > wild and cultivated plants > [adjective] > cultivated or planted

gentle?1440

plantedc1450

husbandly1550

tame1551

manured1562

domestical1578

sative1599

mild1601

cultivated1634

hortala1704

sativous1786

farmed1897

1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. xxiii. vii. 168 As many vertues as the mild Figge tree hath, yet the wild is much more effectuall.

3. Of weather, seasons, etc.: not rough or stormy, not harsh or severe; calm, fine; moderately (esp. unseasonably) warm. Of a climate: temperate.Used figuratively in quot. 1609.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > fine weather > [adjective] > mild (of weather or climate)

mildOE

softc1225

greenc1425

gentle1550

genial1647

clement1652

balmy1709

maumy1728

the world > matter > gas > air > [adjective] > specific qualities of (the) air > equable

mildOE

attemperedc1430

well-attempereda1460

moderate1590

temperate1698

OE Azarias 82 Ful oft þu, wuldorcyning, þurh lyft lætest leodum to freme mildne morgenren.

a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xxxiv. 212 (MED) And At the Cleryng of the day, the wedyr ful Milde and softe he say.

a1500 in F. J. Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 244 Apon a mylde mornyng of may.

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 318/2 Mylde of wether, paisible.

1609 W. Shakespeare Pericles xi. 27 Now mylde may be thy life, For a more blusterous birth had neuer Babe.

1637 J. Milton Comus 1 In Regions mild of calme and serene aire.

1716 J. Gay Trivia i. 10 Signs..Of milder Weather, and serener Skies.

1769 F. Brooke Hist. Emily Montague I. xli. 193 The savages assure us, my dear, on the information of the beavers, that we shall have a very mild winter.

1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound i. i. 59 Spring..Whose mild winds shake the elder brake.

1822 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 20 Apr. 4/1 A mild winter makes a fat church yard.

1892 E. Lawless Grania I. 1 A mild September afternoon.

1911 D. H. Lawrence White Peacock i. v. 71 The water was mild and blue, and the corn stood drowsily in ‘stook’.

1944 S. Bellow Dangling Man 145 The house began to go cold, and at two o'clock the electricity was shut off. It was a mild day; we might easily have borne the chill.

1988 S. Afr. Panorama Apr. 40/1 Richards Bay..enjoys a subtropical climate, with hot humid summers and warm, mild winters.

Categories »

†4. Anatomy. Soft, delicate. Only in mild mother at mother n.¹ 11. Obsolete. rare.

a. Of food, drink, or tobacco: not sharp, strong, or hot in flavour; not pungent.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > taste and flavour > insipidity > [adjective]

wallowc897

smatchless?c1225

unsavoury?c1225

fresha1398

savourlessa1398

wearish1398

wershed1398

fond?c1430

unsavoured1435

palled1440

mildc1450

walsh1513

wallowish1548

dead1552

waterish1566

cold1585

flatten1594

seasonless1595

wersha1599

blown1600

flash1601

fatuous1608

tasteless1611

flat1617

insipid1620

ingustable1623

flashy1625

flatted1626

saltless1633

gustless1636

remiss1655

rheumatical1655

untasteable1656

vapid1656

exolete1657

distasted1662

vappous1673

insulse1676

toothless1679

mawkisha1697

intastable1701

waugh1703

impoignant1733

flavourless1736

instimulating1740

deadish1742

mawky1755

brineless1791

wishy-washy1791

keestless1802

shilpit1814

wish-washy1814

sapidless1821

silent1826

slushy1839

bland1878

spendsavour1879

wish-wash1896

dolled1917

spiceless1980

c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 4824 (MED) Was neuir no mede ne no milke so mild vndire heuen.

1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry ii. f. 58^v The smoother the leafe is, the mileder and the sweeter is the roote.

1768 I. Bickerstaff Lionel & Clarissa i. ii. 6 Why one bottle [of hock] won't hurt you man, this is old and as mild as milk.

1845 E. Acton Mod. Cookery iv. 145 Mild Ragout of Garlic... By changing very frequently the water in which it is boiled, the root will be deprived of its naturally pungent flavour and smell, and rendered extremely mild.

1880 Harper's Mag. June 25/2 There is no easier way of solving a social problem than through the medium of a mild and fragrant cigar and a pousse-café.

1907 Daily Chron. 16 July 4/4 British cheese should be mild, nutty, and salvy.

c1934 D. Thomas Coll. Lett. (1987) 109 I am allowed a pipe—mild tobacco, not too much.

1973 E. David in WineMine 25 58/1 2 thin slices of mild cooked ham.

1997 Sci. Amer. June 22/1 The U.S. is now in the seventh decade of a lung cancer epidemic that started with the introduction of milder, more inhalable cigarettes near the turn of the century.

b. spec. of ale or beer. In early use apparently: free from acidity, not sour or stale. Now: not strongly flavoured with hops (opposed to bitter). Also in to draw it mild at draw v. Phrases 11.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > [adjective] > mild

mild1550

1550 in Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS: Var. Coll. (1907) IV. 220 It is agreed..that bere of the best shalbe solde noo derer then 22d. the barell, and mylde bere for 18d. the barell.

1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §52 A good draught of Milde Beer.

1717 M. Prior Alma ii. 203 Suppose your eyes sent equal rays Upon two distant pots of ale, Not knowing which was mild or stale.

1783 J. O'Keeffe Brown Jug (song) in Poor Soldier i This brown jug that now foams with mild ale..Was once Toby Filpot.

1818 W. Kitchiner Cook's Oracle (ed. 2) 502 Cool Tankard, or Beer Cup. A quart of mild ale, a glass of white wine, one of brandy [etc.].

1886 ‘J. Bickerdyke’ Curiosities Ale & Beer 391 A pint..of mild beer, half a pint of brandy [etc.].

1889 A. Barnard Noted Breweries I. 357 Cellars..for racking and storing mild ales.

1949 ‘G. Orwell’ Nineteen Eighty-four i. viii. 90 When I was a young man, mild beer—wallop we used to call it—was fourpence a pint.

1969 Beer & Cider (Know the Drink) 32/1 Brown Ale, sometimes called ‘Home-brewed’. Dark and usually rather sweet. It is the bottled equivalent of mild ale and is a good mixer with it.

1997 Baltimore Mag. Aug. 47/1 The Marble Golden Ale is pale, mild, and sweetish, while the Stockade Amber Ale is a shade darker and a hint hoppier; neither should alarm first-time brewpubbers.

c. Of an illness or pain: not severe.

ΘΚΠ

the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > characteristics > [adjective] > mild or curable

recoverable1585

schetical1666

mild1684

schetic1706

benign1743

benignant1897

weak1899

avirulent1900

1684 tr. T. Bonet Guide Pract. Physician xiv. 509 Upon the first Blandiment of the Fomentation the pain grows milder.

1696 J. Pechey tr. T. Sydenham Whole Wks. v. vi. 210 The end of the Year 75; at which time the Small-Pox, and the continual Fevers, their Companions..now growing mild, seemed to be now going off.

1744 G. Berkeley Siris (ESTC T72826) §3 Others had it [sc. small-pox] in the mildest manner.

1800 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 4 187 The inoculated Cow-Pox is a much milder and safer disease than the inoculated Small-Pox.

1843 T. Watson Lect. Princ. & Pract. Physic I. xi. 709 When the paroxysm thus postpones, the disease is growing milder.

1897 Arch. Surg. 8 230 A mild attack of syphilis occurred, not..followed by reminders.

1955 Sci. News Let. 9 July 25/3 Brucellosis is a bacterial disease contracted in a mild but persistent form by the drinking of raw milk.

1992 Woman 7 Dec. 16/3 During mild attacks, all that may be necessary is to give the child paracetamol.

6. Of light or a luminous body: shining softly, lambent. Also in extended use. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > light > intensity of light > [adjective] > somewhat bright or mildly radiant

brightsome1548

brightish1584

milda1645

a1645 E. Waller To Young Lady Lucy Sidney 10 The rosy morne resignes her light, And milder glory to the Noon.

1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued II. i. xviii. 273 The Governour of the Universe is a more discernible object,..cloathed with milder rays of glory.

1820 J. Keats Lamia i, in Lamia & Other Poems 25 A silver lamp, whose phosphor glow Reflected in the slabbed steps below, Mild as a star in water.

1832 F. H. Standish Maid of Jaen 21 The moon's mild orb was shining seen.

1883 Harper's Mag. July 273/2 The moonbeams streamed through the narrow windows into the room, and fell in broad strips of light upon the stony floor, diffusing a mild and mellow lustre in some parts.

1994 Independent on Sunday 17 July 15/5 Islington Person shines instead with a mild political effulgence, placing high value on what Professor A.H. Halsey calls koinonia, the fellowship of sharing.

a. Of a medicine, cleaning agent, etc.: not powerful or violent in effect; not causing severe side effects; not harsh or irritant. †Of a pathological secretion: not irritant (obsolete).

ΘΚΠ

the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > [adjective] > relating to powers or effects of drugs > mild

lithec1400

gentle1534

benign1638

mild1652

unirritant1822

bland1835

soft1959

1652 N. Culpeper Eng. Physitian Enlarged 12 The milde Arsmart is good against hot Imposthumes.

1676 R. Wiseman Severall Chirurg. Treat. ii. vi. (R.) If too mild detergents caused the flesh to grow lax and spongy, then more powerful driers are required.

1732 J. Arbuthnot Pract. Rules of Diet i. 257 Anti-acids of a milder Kind.

1781 W. Cowper Charity 502 Most satirists are indeed a public scourge; Their mildest physic is a farrier's purge.

1822 J. M. Good Study Med. IV. 77 The matter discharged is whitish and mild, producing no excoriation..or other disquiet.

1831 W. Youatt Horse x. 171 A very mild dose of physic.

1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VIII. 614 The milder form of sulphur lotion is preferable.

1925 Woman's World (Chicago) Apr. 34/2 (advt.) Wash new inlaid linoleum as soon as laid with a mild soap.

1951 A. Grollman Pharmacol. & Therapeutics xix. 387 Calomel..formerly enjoyed wide popularity as a mild cathartic.

1989 Which? Aug. 379/1 They're scrubbable, so you can use a mild abrasive and a soft brush to remove marks.

1991 S. Constantine Hermetech 272 Good. Let her eat lunch and then give her a mild tranquilliser.

b. Chemistry. Of an alkali: not caustic (now historical); (hence) neutral or carbonated.Following Joseph Black ( De Humero Acido a Cibis Orto, et Magnesia Alba, 1754) English chemists realized that the difference between caustic and non-caustic alkalies was due to the fact that the latter contained a ‘fixed air’, later identified as carbon dioxide; hence the extension of meaning.

ΚΠ

1791 Edinb. New Dispensatory (ed. 3) 381 Mild fixed alkali is..considerably deliquescent.

1794 R. Kirwan Elements Mineral. (ed. 2) I. 6 Mild Calx (so I call lime united with fixed air).

1799 R. Kirwan Geol. Ess. 149 The limestone of Malta contains both calcareous earth and magnesia, but most probably in a mild state.

1805 W. Saunders Treat. Mineral Waters (ed. 2) 43 The mild or carbonated ammonia, will decompose all the earthy salts by double affinity.

1820 T. Tredgold Elem. Princ. Chem. x. 166 Quicklime..has a powerful effect in hastening the decomposition of wood... Mild lime (carbonate of lime) has not this effect.

1901 M. Foster Lect. Hist. Physiol. 233 Black made the notable observation that ordinary or mild lime lost in weight when it was burnt into caustic lime.

1922 T. M. Lowry Inorg. Chem. iv. 48 A third alkali was prepared by heating sal-ammoniac with mild soda or potash.

1940 G. H. J. Adlam & L. S. Price Higher School Certificate Inorg. Chem. (ed. 2) xxii. 176 Sodium hydroxide is also made by ‘causticizing’ a solution of mild soda (sodium carbonate) with good quicklime.

1964 A. J. Ihde Devel. Mod. Chem. 27 He further observed that the magnesia (MgO) and the quicklime (CaO)..reacted with solutions of mild alkalies and formed magnesia alba and chalk once more.

8. Of physical exercise, a fight, etc.: moderate, light; not very violent. Of a game: not unduly strenuous or competitive. Of amusement or recreation: not boisterous or exuberant.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adjective] > specifically of exercise or amusement

mild1831

1831 W. Youatt Horse x. 171 Mild exercise should be used.

1878 ‘G. Eliot’ Let. 8 Aug. (1956) VII. 54 My little man..fights resolutely against these ills..having mild games of tennis.

1882 A. Bain James Mill 388 There should also be social amusements of a mild character, such as to promote cheerfulness rather than profuse merriment.

1916 A. Bennett These Twain ii. xiv. 271 ‘Shall we knock the balls about a bit?’ They began a mild game of croquet.

1956 I. Murdoch Flight from Enchanter xi. 155 She knew that she could not oppose her will to that of Mischa in any direct combat, she could not propose even the mildest skirmish.

1987 C. Achebe Anthills of Savannah iv. 39 A mild scuffle began right in front of me.

a. Chiefly regional. Of soil, wood, etc.: soft, easy to work. Cf. the earlier mild steel n. at Compounds 2.

ΚΠ

1852 C. W. Hoskyns Talpa xix. 163 This'll be mild enough for anything presently; you don't call this a stiff soil?

1875 T. Laslett Timber & Timber Trees xiv. 84 The Modena, Roman, and Sardinian [Oaks] are what the workmen call milder in character—that is to say, they are easier to work, and a little less hard than the former [kinds].

1880 R. Jefferies Round about Great Estate ix. 164 These old French burrs be the best stone; they be hard, but they be mild and takes the peck well.

1936 Forestry 10 39 The exceptionally mild timber from Spessart, in Germany, is the product of this species.

†b. Physics. Capable of being moulded or deformed without breaking; = malleable adj. 1. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > materials > types of material generally > [adjective] > mouldable or workable

freec1300

malleablec1395

pliablec1475

workable1545

hammerable1611

mouldable1626

soluble1650

kind1747

plastic1791

temperable1841

mild1878

manipulable1881

1878 J. C. Maxwell in Encycl. Brit. VI. 312/1 A body which can have its form permanently changed without any flaw or break taking place is called mild. When the force required is small the body is said to be soft; when it is great the body is said to be tough.

†B. adv.

= mildly adv. Chiefly poetic. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [adverb]

mildOE

methelyOE

mildlyOE

meeklyc1175

mansuetelyc1429

placidly1635

impetulantly1821

unfrowardly1869

the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adverb]

lithelyc897

softeOE

mildOE

methelyOE

mildlyOE

mansuetelyc1429

gently1525

gentle1548

tenderfully1640

laxly1785

placably1797

unfrowardly1869

OE Crist I 249 Þu þisne middangeard milde geblissa þurh ðinne hercyme, hælende Crist.

OE Metrical Psalm Fragments (Junius 121) lxxix. 18 Gehweorf us, mægna god, and us milde æteow þinne andwlitan.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 110 And thus the Godlike Angel answerd milde .

1730 J. Thomson Autumn in Seasons 175 The pale deluge..streaming mild O'er the sky'd mountain to the shadowy vale.

1739 C. Wesley in J. Wesley & C. Wesley Hymns & Sacred Poems ii. 207 Mild he lays his Glory by, Born—that Man no more may die.

1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 443 As oft As the sun peeps and vernal airs breathe mild.

1882 T. Hardy Two on Tower III. ii. 46 If you'll deal mild with us a moment.

C. n.¹

†1. A person who is gentle or conciliatory in character or disposition. Cf. sense A. 1d. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [noun] > person or creature

mildeOE

lambc1000

eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxiv. 8 (9) Dirigit mites in iudicio : gereceð ða mildan in dome.

OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) 13 Þa gehyrsuman and þa mildan and þa geþyldigan he sceal witnian and halsian.

a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 113 Drihten..on-hefð þa mildan [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 ahefð þa eadmodan].

c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 235 ‘Haile, maister,’ quod þat myld, & made him to sytt..hire be-syde.

c1480 (a1400) St. Alexis 103 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 444 Syne dyliuere was þat myld, thru godis helpe, of a knaf chyld.

a1505 R. Henryson Annunciation 13 in Poems (1981) 154 This message mervale gert that myld.

1813 H. G. Knight Alashtar iii. xiii Let the weak bewail! Well may the mild, the woman-hearted fail.

a. A mild-tasting ale or beer; (now esp.) a kind of dark beer not strongly flavoured with hops. Cf. sense A. 5b.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > [noun]

oil of barley1638

oil of malt1638

malt liquor1693

mild1712

malt1718

malt-bree1780

heavy wet1821

heavy1823

1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 317 Took a Pot of Mother Cob's Mild.

1894 A. Morrison Martin Hewitt ii. 63 ‘Had his glass o'beer, has he?’..‘Has two glasses of mild a-day... Never puts on flesh.’

1944 D. Thomas Let. 21 Sept. in Sel. Lett. (1966) 267 It is time for the Black Lion But there is only Buckley's unfriskly Mild.

1963 Times 25 May 9/7 ‘But t'brig isn't t'world’, a sewing-shop overlooker says over his gill of mild.

1979 T. Foster Dr. Foster's Bk. Beer iii. 54 The flavour of mild encompasses a wide variety of tastes.

1992 T. Davies Modest Pageant 109 Can I have..a black and tan, half a shandy, a pint of bitter, a pint of mild, a mild and bitter mixed.

b. mild-and-bitter n. a mixture of mild and bitter beer.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > mixed drinks of ale or beer > [noun]

three-threads1698

pap-in1748

half-and-half1756

porter cup1790

shandygaff1853

mixed ale1864

cooper1871

black and tan1881

four-half1884

mother-in-law1884

shandy1888

smiler1892

mild-and-bitter1933

red-eye1960

1933 D. L. Sayers Hangman's Holiday 157 Half of mild-and-bitter, please.

1951 E. Hyams Sylvester xxiv. 121 The chaps in the local, drinking a pint of mild and bitter.

1957 J. Braine Room at Top ii. 22 We used to..live on onions and cheese washed down with mild-and-bitter.

1976 Cumberland & Westmorland Herald 4 Dec. 12/4 A pub, near Kirkstone Pass, where the young lady hostess served a very good measure of mild and bitter!

Compounds

C1. Parasynthetic and adverbial.

† mild-aspected adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

1597 M. Drayton Englands Heroicall Epist. f. 18 That blessed night, that mild-aspected howre, Wherein thou mad'st escape out of the Towre.

† mild-aspecting adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

1601 J. Weever Mirror of Martyrs sig. C6^v On Sea the mild-aspecting heauens would guide me.

?a1603 E. Grymeston Miscelanea (1604) vi. sig. D Th' vnchaunging proiects of the king of heauen! Th' one sterne of looke, th' other milde aspecting.

† mild-brewed adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

1880 Hints & Helps Everyday Emergencies 9 1. Abstain from all spirits and dram-drinking... 2. When mild-brewed beer agrees keep to it as a beverage (at your meals only).

1905 W. L. Courtney Father Time & Childr. in Queen's Carol 95 October comes to give men cheer, With purple grapes and mild-brewed beer!

mild-cured adj.

ΚΠ

1884 Times (Weekly ed.) 31 Oct. 7/4 Mild cured butter.

1958 T. N. Morris in C. Singer et al. Hist. Technol. V. 32 Mechanical refrigeration..made possible the production of mild-cured and leaner bacon.

1984 J. Grigson Brit. Cookery 122 Today, York ham has become a generalised term, meaning no more than a mild cured ham.

mild-eyed adj.

ΚΠ

c1794 S. Favell in S. T. Coleridge Coll. Lett. (1956) I. 56 And you, Ye mild-eyed Forms!

1914 E. R. Burroughs Tarzan of Apes xx. 283 Jane Porter had been watching his antics in mild eyed surprise.

1991 V. Porter Cattle (BNC) 44 This is the mild-eyed breed which produces possibly the best beef in the world.

mild-faced adj.

ΚΠ

1823 R. Bloomfield Hazelwood-Hall i. iii. 11 But what is the matter with my little mild-faced Mary? She does not look well.

1866 W. D. Howells Venetian Life vii A very mild-faced old priest.

1917 E. Wharton Summer iii. 44 She looked with abhorrence at the long dingy rows of books, the sheep-nosed Minerva on her black pedestal, and the mild-faced young man in a high stock whose effigy pined above her desk.

1995 Guardian 23 Sept. (Outlook section) 26/5 The show's leader, mild-faced, stocky Luke Cresswell, starts brushing the floor.

mild-flavoured adj.

ΚΠ

1841 Southern Literary Messenger 7 482/2 Besides wine, its principal staple, this island produces rye, maize and wheat, some arrowroot,..pears and peaches, and a very large mild flavored onion.

1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 29 Mar. (Suppl.) 8/2 For the next omelette, which comes from the Savoy Mountains where French Gruyère cheese is made, you really need the mild sweetness of the true Gruyère. Other mild-flavoured cheeses can be used, but Gruyère is far the best.

1995 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 14 Jan. f3/2 A creamy ragout of crosnes (small, crisp mild-flavoured tubers that look a bit like seashell pasta).

mild-looking adj.

ΚΠ

1820 C. R. Maturin Melmoth I. v. 204 He was a grave, but mild-looking ecclesiastic.

1892 Bulletin (Sydney) 9 Jan. 10/1 The gaol at the ‘Pivot’ is a sort of Benevolent Asylum for used-up assassins, and in the ‘lifer’ yard of that drowsy institution you can see groups of mild-looking ancients.

1955 W. H. Auden Shield of Achilles ii. 38 Mild-looking middle class boys Who read the comic strips.

1987 A. Dillard Amer. Childhood (1990) ii. 142 One book included a photograph of a mild-looking hobbyist in his basement workshop.

mild-mannered adj.

ΚΠ

1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xvi. 284 Let her bee milde-worded and milde-manered.

1821 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto III xli. 23 He was the mildest manner'd man That ever scuttled ship or cut a throat.

1911 Encycl. Brit. XVII. 837/2 The Mashona..are in general a peaceful, mild-mannered people.

1988 Star (Tarrytown, N.Y.) 12 Apr. 2/2 We think he'll fit in well up here because he's always so mild-mannered, pleasant and soft-spoken.

mild-mooned adj. rare

ΚΠ

1820 J. Keats Lamia i, in Lamia & Other Poems 12 A deep volcanian yellow took the place Of all her milder-mooned body's grace.

1939 V. Patterson Wise as Goose i. iii. 40 It was a warm night, and the river lay glowing beside the road under a mild-mooned sky.

† mild-persuading adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

1601 J. Weever Mirror of Martyrs sig. D3^v In mild-perswading words and deedes.

mild-scented adj.

ΚΠ

1771 J. Hill Fossils 322 (table) Colour. Pale yellow Qualities. mild scentedPlace. Aix la Chapelle.

1821 S. F. Gray Nat. Arrangem. Brit. Plants II. 417 Mild-scented cut-leaved wild lettuce.

1992 She (BNC) May 136 To serve, squeeze some of mild-scented garlic insides over each potato, add salt if wished, and pop into your mouth while hot.

2009 D. Brenner & S. Scanniello Rose by any other Name 260/2 ‘First Kiss’: The mild-scented pink floribunda is a child of ‘Simplicity’.

mild-seeming adj.

ΚΠ

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. sig. N3^v The sheep, [gave] mild-seeming face.

1872 M. D. Conway Republican Superstitions iv. 103 It was a mild-seeming ghost of a King, this Presidency, when it stood asking admission into the Constitution.

1991 T. Mo Redundancy of Courage (BNC) 325 They were nothing if not astute, those mild-seeming old men with their erect bearings, gentle manners, and hands reeking of innocent blood.

2015 A. Perry Corridors of Night i. 14 He was a mild-seeming man, several years younger than his brother.

mild-spirited adj.

ΚΠ

1736 J. Arbuthnot Law is Bottomless Pit in Misc. II. v. 20 The Neigbours reported that he was hen-pecked, which was impossible, by such a mild-spirited Woman as his Wife was.

1827 J. G. Whittier Restoration in Haverhill Gaz. 27 Jan. 1/1 To thee shall be given Mild-spirited peace, and unchangeable fame.

1998 P. Liddle in H. Cecil & P. H. Liddle in At 11th Hour iv. 55 A mild-spirited private in the 14th Battalion Royal Fusiliers, H.S. Innes, revealed in his letters as an unwilling conscript, [etc.].

2008 A. E. Kinser in A. O'Reilly Feminist Mothering 132 After we divorced, I married someone who is not mild-spirited.

mild-spoken adj.

ΚΠ

a1618 J. Sylvester tr. J. Bertaut Parl. Vertues Royall in tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Divine Weekes & Workes (1621) 859 Hee, more discreet, and milder-spoken, farr, Replyes: My Sonne, sure verie few there are (Yea of the wisest, who best vnderstand) That easily can answer thy demand.

1727 Art Speaking in Publick vi. 84 An Orator ought not to be too Remiss, neither in his Action, nor too Mild-spoken.

1865 A. Trollope Can you forgive Her? II. xiii. 100 George would not become soft and mild-spoken even by a death-bed side, and it would be likely enough that the Squire would curse his heir with his dying breath.

1976 Amer. Hist. Rev. 81 365/2 To bold-tongued law students and to mild-spoken historians and political scientists.

† mild-sprited adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

1607 T. Campion Discr. Maske Ld. Hayes sig. B4^v Mild sprited Zephyrus haile.

mild-tempered adj.

ΚΠ

1747 tr. J. Astruc Academical Lect. Fevers 169 A cold mild-tempered easy patient.

1872 Appletons' Jrnl. 13 Apr. 416/1 William was long in the East-India service, kindly, mild-tempered, and genial, with none of his father's passionate nature or literary genius.

1904 J. London Sea-wolf xxx. 290 It was a rookery which had never been raided by the hunters, and in consequence the seals were mild-tempered and at the same time unafraid.

1982 S. K. Penman Sunne in Splendour (1984) i. v. 65 Henri who was so poor a horseman he must be provided with mild-tempered geldings.

mild-worded adj.

ΚΠ

1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xvi. 284 Let her bee milde-worded and milde-manered.

1872 Cornhill Mag. Apr. 438 It reminded him of the diabolical notes which accompany the mild-worded serenade in Don Giovanni.

1920 B. Pearl Sarah & her Daughter ii. i. 226 Louis' roughness of manner was refreshing rather than offensive. He was loud-spoken, but mild-worded.

1969 Sun (Lowell, Mass.) 18 Apr. 1/2 The relatively mild-worded statement, which called on North Korea ‘to prevent similar incidents in the future’, had left unaswered questions [etc.].

C2.

mild steel n. steel which contains only a low percentage of carbon, and is tough and easily worked but not readily tempered or hardened.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > metal > steel > [noun] > other types of steel

hardened steel1557

shear steel1815

blister-steel1831

mild steel1850

carbon steel1856

Bessemer steel1864

soft centre1865

silicon steel1882

weld-steel1884

rimmed steel1920

1850 Sci. Amer. 25 May 288/3 In converting iron into steel, a hundred weight of iron combines with from 4 to 12 ounces of carbon; the former proportion producing very mild steel, and the latter being the maximum dose for any useful purpose.

1868 F. H. Joynson Metals in Constr. 90 What is called in the trade ‘homogeneous iron’ is a species of ‘mild-steel’, and has been introduced by a Sheffield firm.

1939 Archit. Rev. 85 298 (caption) An assistant's desk of Australian silky oak on an enamelled mild steel tube frame.

1966 McGraw-Hill Encycl. Sci. & Technol. (rev. ed.) XIII. 90/1 Steels containing about 0.25% carbon are classed as mild steels.

1992 Mech. Products & Tools July 1346/1 Packs of plain brass and mild steel (zinc plated) studding.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	mild
释义	† mildn.² Forms: Middle English mylde, 1500s milde. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: mild adj. Etymology: < mild adj. Compare Middle Dutch milde, Middle Low German milde, Old High German miltī, milti, also milta (Middle High German milte, milde, German Milde), Old Icelandic mildi, Gothic mildiþa. Obsolete. rare. Gentleness, pity, kindness. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > compassion > [noun] rutha1200 ruenessa1225 ruefulnessc1225 birewnessa1250 pityc1300 ruea1325 compassionc1340 midtholing1340 miserationa1382 rueinga1382 bowel1382 mildc1390 tendresse1390 ruefulhead?a1400 ruthnessa1400 tendernessa1400 compunction1430 bowels of compassion1526 remorse1538 commiseration1582 kindheartedness1583 commorse1595 earning1603 tender-heartedness1607 compassionateness1614 visceraa1651 ruthfulness1674 karuna1850 the mind > emotion > compassion > [noun] > mercy milceeOE mildheartnesseOE oreOE mildheartlaikc1175 mercya1225 misericordc1230 pitya1250 gracec1300 mildheadc1300 milcefulnessa1333 pietya1350 tree of mercyc1375 miserationa1382 mildc1390 piteousnessa1393 miltha1400 milthnessa1400 blithec1400 mercifulnessc1429 misericordy1479 mildfulness1489 clemence1490 clemency1553 pardon1555 pitifulness1555 milk of human kindnessa1616 mussy1823 mild-heartedness1849 c1390 Talkyng of Love of God (Vernon) (1950) 26 (MED) Summe mylde and Mekensse & deboner herte wiþ swete louereden and godliche dedes. a1425 in M. Day Wheatley MS (1921) 72 (MED) Lete mylde and mekenes melte þin herte. 1576 G. Gascoigne Complaynt of Phylomene in Steele Glas sig. P.iij^v Then Progne phy for thee, Which kildst thine only child, Phy on the cruel crabbed hart Which was not movde with milde. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online December 2021). mildn.³ Brit. /mʌɪld/, U.S. /maɪld/ Inflections: Plural milds, unchanged. Forms: 1700s mield, 1700s– mild. Origin: A variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: mile n.¹ Etymology: Variant of mile n.¹ with excrescent -d-. English regional and U.S. regional. Now rare. A mile. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > measurement > measurement of length > [noun] > units of length or distance > mile mileeOE mile1632 mild1701 M1719 1701 in Essex Inst. Historical Coll. (1900) XXXVI. 83 To run the lien of mesuer from Ipswich meting howes..six mields. 1725 in H. S. Nourse Early Rec. Lancaster, Mass. (1884) 231 We traueled to Groten 12 milds... We marcht up the riuer about 8 milds. 1777 R. Lincoln Diary 7 July in Papers (1904) 15 They ware Engaged in Carring gun bots..over land about one mild into Lake George. 1836 Knickerbocker 8 352 I expect we are a mild and a half from the city. 1842 G. P. R. Pulman Rustic Sketches 12 A mild below our town. 1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. (at cited word) I count 'tis up vower mild yer-vrom. 1903 Dial. Notes 2 321 I haven't walked a mild in a year. 1927 Amer. Speech 3 10 Most [Ozark] natives use mile for both singular and plural, but some of the old-timers use the plural form mild. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022). mildadj.adv.n.¹ Brit. /mʌɪld/, U.S. /maɪld/ Forms: Old English–1600s mild (rare), Old English–1600s milde, Old English–1600s mylde, early Middle English mildæ, Middle English melde, Middle English myelde, Middle English myild, Middle English mylþe (transmission error), Middle English myyld, Middle English–1500s myld, 1500s meeld, 1500s miled; Scottish pre-1700 milde, pre-1700 myeld, pre-1700 myild, pre-1700 myilde, pre-1700 myld, pre-1700 mylde, pre-1700 1700s– mild. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Cognate with Old Frisian milde , Middle Dutch milde , melde , milt , melt (Dutch mild ), Old Saxon mildi (Middle Low German milde ), Old High German milte , milti (Middle High German milde , milte , German mild , milde ), Old Icelandic mildr , Old Swedish milder (Swedish mild ), Danish mild , Gothic -milds (in the compounds friaþwamilds loving, unmilds unkind), and further with ancient Greek μαλθακός soft, mild, Early Irish mell , mellach pleasant ( < earlier meld , meldach ) < an extended form of the Indo-European base of meal n.¹ A. adj. 1. Of people, their disposition and behaviour. a. With reference to a person having power, e.g. a ruler: gracious, clement, merciful, kind, indulgent; not harsh or severe. Now somewhat archaic. ΚΠ eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) ii. ii. 100 Gif Agustinus is milde & eaðmodre heortan, þonne is he gelyfed þæt he Cristes geoc bere. OE Death of Edward (Tiber. B.i) 23 Syððan forð becom..kyningc kystum god, clæne and milde, Eadward se æðela. lOE Laws of Wihtræd (Rochester) Prol. 12 Ðam mildestan cyninge Cantwara Wihtræde rixigendum þe fiftan wintra his rice. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 483 Þat tyme, Theobald þe mylde [L. pius], eorle of Campania, was in his floures. a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) v. 1411 Antone the myld off the empire Stud empryoure. 1586 T. Wilkes Let. Dec. in H. Brugmans Correspondentie van R. Dudley (1931) 313 Hoping, as I doe yet, to be hable with myne own letters to persuade sir William to carye a milde hand over that people. 1607 T. Middleton Phoenix sig. I3 Your grace may now in milder sence perceiue The wrong done to vs by this impudent wretch. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 1046 Remember with what mild And gracious temper he both heard and judg'd Without wrauth or reviling. View more context for this quotation 1725 A. Pope tr. Homer Odyssey III. xiv. 160 So mild a master never shall I find. 1776 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. x. 276 The same prince, who, in Armenia, had displayed the mild aspect of a legislator, showed himself to the Romans under the stern features of a conqueror. 1832 J. A. Heraud Voy. & Mem. Midshipman (1837) ix. 157 This mild prince..is deservedly popular with his..subjects. 1871 G. A. Lawrence Anteros (1872) xx. 177 ‘Pray, gently, on the right’—cries the mild Master, in the act of swattering through a miry pool. 1968 G. Jones Hist. Vikings iv. i. 319 In the first category are the dread sovereign, the ferocious master of magic and wisdom, like Odinn, and the milder sovereign who bestows law and justice, like..Tyr. 1999 S. R. F. Price Relig. Anc. Greeks (2004) viii. 154 But the alleged links between Pythagoras and the mild king who created many of Rome's religious institutions and laws were probably long established by 181 BC. b. Of God, Christ, or the Virgin Mary (in Christian belief): gracious, merciful. Now chiefly in traditional collocations. ΘΚΠ society > authority > lack of strictness > [adjective] > lenient mildeOE eði modesa1325 easyc1325 sweet1607 lenitive1620 lenient1787 go-easy1901 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > [adjective] mildeOE blitheOE goodOE well-willingOE beina1200 goodfulc1275 blithefula1300 faira1300 benignc1320 gainc1330 sweetc1330 kinda1333 propicec1350 well-willeda1382 well-disposeda1393 well-hearteda1393 well-willinga1393 friendsomea1400 well-willya1400 charitablec1405 well-willed1417 good-heartedc1425 kindlyc1425 honeyed1435 propitious1440 affectuousc1441 willya1449 homelyc1450 benevolous1470 benigned1470 benevolent1482 favourousc1485 well-meaned1488 well-meaning1498 humanec1500 favourablec1503 affectionatea1516 well-mindedc1522 beneficial1526 propiciant1531 benignate1533 well-intendeda1535 beneficious1535 kind-hearted1535 well-given1535 affectioned1539 well-wishing1548 figgy?1549 good-meaning1549 affectedc1553 affectionated1561 well-natured1561 well-affected?1563 officious1565 well-inclined1569 good-natured1582 partial1587 graceful?1593 well-intentioned1598 beneficent1616 candid1633 kindlike1637 benefic1641 kindly-hearted1762 well-meant1765 benignanta1782 sweet-hearted1850 the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > nature or attributes of God > [adjective] > gracious mildeOE graciousa1375 the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > Mary > [adjective] > kind or merciful mildeOE gracious1999 the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > the Trinity > the Son or Christ > [adjective] > according to other attributes fatherlyeOE mildeOE blissful1387 thorn-crowned1609 luciform1862 deific1878 eOE Metres of Boethius xxix. 67 Ac se milda metod monna bearnum on eorðan fet eall þætte groweð. OE Blickling Homilies 71 Secggaþ Siones dohtrum þæt heora cining cymeþ, milde & monþwære. OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1900) II. 64 Tatheus..him eallum sæde þone soðan geleafan, and mancynnes alysednysse þurh ðone mildan hælend. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 21 Þus mildeliche andswerede þe milde quen of heuene. c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (1973) 2378 Lauerd, leome & lif of alle riht bileafde; Milde Iesu. 1389 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 47 His mild modir, seynt marye. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 24748 Quen i ma mening o þat mild [sc. the Virgin]. 1567 Compend. Bk. Godly Songs (1897) 84 Thow blissit Virgin mylde. 1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 121 Libertie would auaile me nothing, if Christ by his most milde incarnation had not taken away our captiuitie. 1646 Sir T. Browne Pseudodoxia Epidemica viii. 126 This ascetic rule, which held that a saint was disgraced by the very society which his mild Master sought and loved. a1729 J. Rogers 19 Serm. (1735) i. 5 It teaches us..to adore him as a mild and merciful Being, of infinite Love..to his Creatures. 1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xvi. 526 His [sc. Jesus of Nazareth's] mild constancy in the midst of cruel and voluntary sufferings, his universal benevolence, and the sublime simplicity of his actions and character, were insufficient, in the opinion of those carnal men, to compensate for the want of fame, of empire, and of success. 1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake iii. 136 Ave Maria! maiden mild! 1828 A. Jolly Observ. Sunday Services 156 This mild Majesty of God incarnate..was now about to ascend to heaven. 1896 J. Curtin tr. H. Sienkiewicz Quo Vadis xii. 105 Evidently their God is some curator who is very mild. 1912 Jrnl. Philos. 9 473 Our industrial barons..are practising an undiluted ethics of power and ruthlessness, and professing the mild and sacrificial ethics of Jesus. 1993 United Church Observer June 47/3 We cannot blink the fact that gentle Jesus meek and mild was so stiff in His opinions and so inflammatory in His language that He was thrown out of church, [etc.]. †c. With to or (in early use) dative; (occasionally) with with. Obsolete. ΚΠ eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iv. xxxii. 380 Þa dyde he, swa he on his mode gehogde, &..wæs Dryhten biddende, þæt he him arfæst & milde wære. OE Blickling Homilies 47 God biþ milde þæm monnum þe..on hine gelefaþ. OE Ælfric Homily: Sermo ad Populum (Corpus Cambr. 188) in J. C. Pope Homilies of Ælfric (1967) I. 434 Þonne sitt se Hælend on his heofonlican ðrymsetle,..milde þam godum. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 8254 Loc nu ȝiff crisstene king. Birrþ beon rihhtwis & milde. & god wiþþ all hiss follc. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) 14802 He [sc. Vortimer] wes milde ælche cnafe. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) 1775 (MED) Wið heore cunne heo beoþ mildre. a1425 (c1300) Assumption of Virgin (BL Add.) (1901) l. 888 For oure ladi hure schal be mylde. a1450 (?a1390) J. Mirk Instr. Parish Priests (Claud.) (1974) 29 In worde and dede þou moste be mylde Bothe to mon and to chylde. 1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 70 Yet is he milde to those that aske forgiuenesse. 1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 58 They erect a stone over the head of the deceased, to serve for a seat to the Angels who are to examine him, that they may be the milder to him. d. Gentle and conciliatory in character, disposition, or behaviour; not easily provoked; not giving offence to others; not rough or fierce in manners. Of manners, behaviour, etc.: gentle, conciliatory.In later use sometimes used with disparaging implication of weakness. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [adjective] stillc825 tamec888 mildeOE lithea1000 daftc1000 meekc1325 lambishc1374 meeklyc1375 benign1377 temperatec1380 quieta1382 gall-lessa1398 mansuetea1425 meeta1425 unwrathful1542 rageless1578 lamb-like?1592 mildya1603 milky1602 pigeon-livered1604 placid1614 spleenless?1615 passive1616 unprovokable1646 milken1648 uncaptious1661 stomachless1727 unindignant1789 pianoa1817 ireless1829 unquarrelsome1830 quiet-goinga1835 uncholeric1834 unoffendable1839 baby-milda1845 quiet-tempered1846 turtlish1855 pathic1857 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adjective] stillc825 tamec888 nesheOE mildeOE softOE lithea1000 daftc1000 methefulOE sefteOE meekc1175 benign1377 pleasablea1382 mytha1400 tendera1400 unfelona1400 mansuetea1425 meeta1425 gentlec1450 moy1487 placablea1522 facile1539 effeminate1594 silver1596 mildya1603 unmalicious1605 uncruel1611 maliceless1614 tender-hefteda1616 unpersecutive1664 baby-milda1845 rose water1855 turtlish1855 unvindictive1857 soft-boiled1859 tenderful1901 soft-lining1967 eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iv. xxviii. 360 Ðæt mynster þa heold..Eata biscop, se wæs milde wer & monðwære. OE Guthlac A 739 Swa þæt milde mod wið moncynnes dreamum gedælde. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 2938 Milde he [sc. Joseph] wass..I þatt he nollde wreȝenn. Þatt wimmann. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 173 And þere ynne beþ more mylde peple [L. quæ gentem habet magis piam, contrasted with feras gentes]. c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. x. 83 (MED) Drede is such a Mayster Þat he makeþ Men Meoke and Mylde of heore speche. Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 337 Myyld, and buxum, Pius..supplex. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 776/1 I have knowen hym a heedye felowe, but he is waxen mylde nowe: je lay congneu vng testart, mays il se est bien humylié mayntenant. 1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene v. xii. sig. Z Most bitter wordes they spake..That they the mildest man aliue would make Forget his patience. View more context for this quotation 1647 J. Howell New Vol. of Lett. 129 A harsh mother may bring forth sometimes a mild daughter. 1720 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad VI. xxiv. 963 In whom the Gods had join'd The mildest Manners with the bravest Mind. 1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility I. x. 116 His manners, though serious, were mild . View more context for this quotation a1862 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilisation Eng. (1873) III. ii. 53 The mildest spirit might well have been roused by this. 1922 F. M. Ford Let. 15 Aug. (1965) 144 It is really too much to expect the very mildest of men to aid in sharpening a pen whose sole occupation is the describing of himself as, let us say, maquereau. 1961 J. Heller Catch-22 xv. 144 The inoffensive joint squadron operations officers, were both mild, soft-spoken men of less than middle height. 1999 Independent 1 Dec. i. 8/3 Mr Brown is an equable fellow—meek and mild, even when the insults are spattering him like manure from a muck-spreader. e. Of language or speech: gentle, moderate, measured. Of appearance or mien: kindly, pleasant, placid. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adjective] > of actions or language mildOE lithefullc1275 mildlyc1275 faira1300 unmalicious1605 OE Beowulf 1172 Þu on sælum wes,..ond to Geatum spræc mildum wordum. OE Paris Psalter (1932) lviii. 7 Efne hi habbað on muðe milde spræce, is him on welerum wrað sweord and scearp. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 123 (MED) Þe ilke louerd..lokeð of heuene to men mid his milde egen. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 45 (MED) Þa onswerede him drihten mildere steuene. c1330 (?a1300) Arthour & Merlin (Auch.) (1973) 2655 (MED) Pray Antour wiþ wordes milde Þe milke he ȝiue to þi childe. a1450 St. Edith (Faust.) (1883) 1013 Hure voys was bothe myelde & swete. 1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 36 With such mylde aunsweres he put off the tyme. 1579 T. North tr. Plutarch Liues 648 His speeche was not harsh nor churlishe, but very mylde and pleasaunt, as appeareth by the letters he wrote. 1635 in W. Foster Court Minutes E. India Company (1907) 115 Wherein hee shall find any harsh or bitter language, to sweeten the same in a more mild and gentle phrase. 1771 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. xlix. 184 But this language is too mild for the occasion. 1797 Encycl. Brit. XI. 759 Their features are extremely mild and pleasing. 1813 P. B. Shelley Queen Mab iii. 39 His mild eye beams benevolence no more. 1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xxii. 754 If he sometimes stooped to be a villain—for no milder word will come up to the truth. 1932 W. Faulkner Light in August xiii. 280 The two dogs..two gaunt and cringing phantoms whose droopeared and mild faces gazed with sad abjectness about at the weary, pale faces of man. 1960 C. Day Lewis Buried Day ii. 43 The mild, rather beautiful face is shadowed by a perfectly enormous hat. 2000 Daily Tel. 29 Mar. 29/3 In response to a question, he protested undemonstratively and in mild terms about the out-of-touch presentation of Germany and Germans in much of our media. f. In proverbial similes: as mild as a dove, as mild as May, as mild as milk, etc. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > meek or mild [phrase] as mild as a dove1599 as mild as May1709 as mild as milk1874 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > gentle or mild [phrase] as mild as a dove1599 as mild as May1709 as mild as milk1874 OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. x. 16 Estote ergo prudentes sicut serpentes et simplices sicut columbae : wosas ge forðon hogo suæ nedro & bliðo uel mildo suæ culfre. OE tr. Chrodegang of Metz Regula Canonicorum (Corpus Cambr. 191) viii. 189 Hi beon swa snottre swa næddran and swa milde swa culfran. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 626/2 Whan he is angryest of all I can make hym as mylde as a lambe. 1599 W. Shakespeare et al. Passionate Pilgrime (new ed.) sig. B Faire is my loue, but not so faire as fickle. Milde as a Doue, but neither true nor trustie. 1709 A. Pope Spring in Poet. Misc.: 6th Pt. 728 Sylvia's like Autumn ripe, yet mild as May. 1772 W. Jones Poems 118 Two lovely daughters were his dearest care; Both mild as May, and both as April fair. 1798 J. S. Murray Traveller Returned ii. i. 129 She looked as mild as a lamb, and she was not bigger than a good stout yearling; but, for all that, she had spurits to the back bone. 1843 C. Dickens Martin Chuzzlewit (1844) xxx 363 Still Mr Pecksniff led her calmly on, and looked as mild as any lamb that ever pastured in the fields. 1874 T. Hardy Far from Madding Crowd I. iv. 42 A temper as mild as milk. 1927 J. Buchan Witch Wood xxi. 366 Johnnie said he sat yestreen at Kirk Aller wi' a face like a corp and took his paiks as mild as a wean, and him for ordinar' sic an ettercap. 1962 Washington Daily News 1 Aug. 29/6 He was mild as milk in the civil rights fight over the literacy bill last spring. It got licked. 1998 USA Today (Electronic ed.) 7 Oct. a21 Conversely, some men are mild as milk, others depressive, still others cling to the belief that you never hit a woman, ever. g. Of a controlling or ruling influence, a law, a punishment, etc.: not strict or harsh; moderate in severity; clement. Frequently in comparative use. ΘΚΠ society > authority > lack of strictness > [adjective] largeda1382 softc1405 largea1450 laxc1450 remissa1500 milda1530 gentle1533 slender1577 relax1609 unconstraining1644 unoppressive1648 inoppressive1661 unaustere1741 undespotic1821 light-touch1949 a1530 (c1425) Andrew of Wyntoun Oryg. Cron. Scotl. (Royal) v. l. 3748 To chawng..His decrete in myldare lawe. 1577 H. I. tr. H. Bullinger 50 Godlie Serm. I. ii. viii. sig. M.viii^v/1 But this kind of quieting and setting parties at one, is verie myld in comparison of reuengement and punishment. a1645 E. Waller At Pens-hurst i. 44 Ah! cruel Nymph!..her humble swaine..from the winds and tempests doth expect A milder fate then from her cold neglect! 1673 J. Milton Sonnets xvi, in Poems (new ed.) 59 Who best Bear his milde yoak, they serve him best. 1784 A. Smith Inq. Wealth of Nations (ed. 3) II. iv. viii. 496 The penalties..imposed by this milder statute. 1825 T. B. Macaulay Milton in Edinb. Rev. Aug. 325 But..why not adopt milder measures? 1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xvii. 72 The South..was put under the milder rule of the Bishop. 1904 H. Adams Mont-Saint-Michel & Chartres i. 11 But the eleventh century was not very strict, and the rule of the Benedictines was always mild, until the Cistercians and Saint Bernard stiffened its discipline. 1985 A. Brookner Family & Friends vi. 75 A mild and subtle influence compounded of glancing opinions, smiling obliquities, tender and persuasive flatteries. h. Of behaviour: half-hearted; not keenly felt or seriously intended. Of (usually negative) attitudes, feelings, or expressions: tempered, not powerful or excessive. Of a person's attributes, characteristics, etc.: moderate, slight; not marked or extreme. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adjective] > not vigorous or lively > not vigorous enough or as expected slack1398 laxc1450 mild1612 1612 T. Taylor Αρχὴν Ἁπάντων: Comm. Epist. Paul to Titus 119 By mild reproofes they rather cocker and beare them in their sinnes, then correct them. 1694 T. D'Urfey Comical Hist. Don Quixote: Pt. 2nd Ep. Ded. sig. A^v But by your mild reproof his faults discerne; Made fit for Fame, if not to proud to learn. 1796 S. T. Coleridge Effusion xxxv in Poems Var. Subj. 99 But thy more serious eye a mild reproof Darts, O belovéd Woman. 1832 Ld. Tennyson All Good Things have not kept Aloof 3 I have not lacked thy mild reproof, Nor golden largess of thy praise. 1885 Sat. Rev. 7 Feb. 166/1 Most of us have no wish to cheat railway Companies by travelling first class at third-class prices, but there are ingenious adventurers who practise this mild swindle. 1886 Pall Mall Gaz. 2 Oct. 3 A mild attempt to anarchize English grammar. 1921 Amer. Woman Jan. 14/2 It was a rare dissipation for her, this mild pleasure, but she has spent a miserable, sleepless night, and it seemed that she must get away. An invitation to the fair in the neighboring city offered her some chance for relief. 1940 K. A. Porter Let. 4 May (1990) iv. 176 Your mild accusation of sentimentality in certain stories, or passages perhaps, struck me rather sharply. 1961 I. Fleming Thunderball xi. 114 A scar down his right cheek showed pale against a tan so mild that he must have only recently come to the Island. 1985 P. Trudgill & J. Hannah Internat. Eng. (ed. 2) ii. 16 This variation may be described as involving—as far as pronunciation is concerned—‘mild’ and ‘broad’ accents. 1992 Philadelphia Inquirer 11 Oct. a28/2 In recent years, as the Mexican press began to air some mild criticism of the government, some newspapers began refusing to accept government favors. 2. a. Of an animal: tame, gentle; not wild or fierce. Also (occasionally) of landscape or other natural features. Now rare. ΘΚΠ the world > animals > domestic animal > [adjective] tamec888 mildOE meekc1175 privy1340 unwilda1400 familiar1483 gentle?1531 domestical1562 inward1575 inwards1575 housal1611 domestic1620 cicurated1646 domesticated1802 the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > animal keeping practices general > [adjective] > tamed or trained tamec888 mildOE meekc1175 unwilda1400 chastisedc1440 reclaimed1440 made1474 familiar1483 gentle?1531 domestical1562 inward1575 inwards1575 housal1611 domestic1620 cicurated1646 domiciliated1782 domesticated1802 broken1805 hand-tamed1932 OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 1 Nov. 245 Ða wæron him ða hundas milde for Godes egesan. OE St. Mary of Egypt (Julius) (2002) 118 Seo leo in þæt inran westen [gewat], swa swa þæt mildeste lamb. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1313 Lamb iss soffte. & stille deor & meoc. & milde. c1300 St. James Great (Laud) 183 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 39 (MED) Þe Bollokes and þe ȝoungue steores, þat weren er so wilde, Anon so huy touward heom come, huy woxen tame and milde. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) Prol. 1058 (MED) He the bestes wilde Made of his note tame and milde. c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xv. 275 (MED) Egydie after an hynde cryede, And þorw þe mylke of þat mylde best þe man was susteyned. 1495 Trevisa's Bartholomeus De Proprietatibus Rerum (de Worde) 416 Culuoures ben mylde byrdes & meke. and haunte and loue company of men. a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1897–1973) 270 (MED) Alas, my lam so mylde, whi will thou fare me fro. 1582 S. Batman Vppon Bartholome, De Proprietatibus Rerum 396 A hen is a mild bird about chickens. 1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd i. 310 Among wild Beasts: they at his sight grew mild . View more context for this quotation 1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth IV. 254 Mild, peaceful, and brave, it [sc. the elephant] never abuses its power or its strength. 1801 J. Jones tr. T. Bugge Trav. French Republic viii. 154 The menagerie seems to be separated into two parts, the one for mild animals, and the other for wild and ferocious. 1818 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Canto IV lxvii. 36 Upon a mild declivity of hill. 1823 Ld. Byron Island ii. xx. 43 For even the mildest woods will have their thorn. 1840 Penny Cycl. XVIII. 476/1 The Kinkajou is very mild in captivity. 1940 Harvard Jrnl. Asiatic Stud. 5 90 The dragons are wild and ferocious, clawed and perhaps horned, and not at all the mild, gentle animal of the mirrors. 1982 A. Brookner Providence (1985) vii. 80 The mild country opened out on either side. 1983 R. Narayan Tiger for Malgudi 76 The poor goat..was mild and inoffensive. †b. Of a plant: cultivated, not wild. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > wild and cultivated plants > [adjective] > cultivated or planted gentle?1440 plantedc1450 husbandly1550 tame1551 manured1562 domestical1578 sative1599 mild1601 cultivated1634 hortala1704 sativous1786 farmed1897 1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. xxiii. vii. 168 As many vertues as the mild Figge tree hath, yet the wild is much more effectuall. 3. Of weather, seasons, etc.: not rough or stormy, not harsh or severe; calm, fine; moderately (esp. unseasonably) warm. Of a climate: temperate.Used figuratively in quot. 1609. ΘΚΠ the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > weather > fine weather > [adjective] > mild (of weather or climate) mildOE softc1225 greenc1425 gentle1550 genial1647 clement1652 balmy1709 maumy1728 the world > matter > gas > air > [adjective] > specific qualities of (the) air > equable mildOE attemperedc1430 well-attempereda1460 moderate1590 temperate1698 OE Azarias 82 Ful oft þu, wuldorcyning, þurh lyft lætest leodum to freme mildne morgenren. a1450 (c1410) H. Lovelich Hist. Holy Grail xxxiv. 212 (MED) And At the Cleryng of the day, the wedyr ful Milde and softe he say. a1500 in F. J. Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 244 Apon a mylde mornyng of may. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 318/2 Mylde of wether, paisible. 1609 W. Shakespeare Pericles xi. 27 Now mylde may be thy life, For a more blusterous birth had neuer Babe. View more context for this quotation 1637 J. Milton Comus 1 In Regions mild of calme and serene aire. 1716 J. Gay Trivia i. 10 Signs..Of milder Weather, and serener Skies. 1769 F. Brooke Hist. Emily Montague I. xli. 193 The savages assure us, my dear, on the information of the beavers, that we shall have a very mild winter. 1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound i. i. 59 Spring..Whose mild winds shake the elder brake. 1822 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 20 Apr. 4/1 A mild winter makes a fat church yard. 1892 E. Lawless Grania I. 1 A mild September afternoon. 1911 D. H. Lawrence White Peacock i. v. 71 The water was mild and blue, and the corn stood drowsily in ‘stook’. 1944 S. Bellow Dangling Man 145 The house began to go cold, and at two o'clock the electricity was shut off. It was a mild day; we might easily have borne the chill. 1988 S. Afr. Panorama Apr. 40/1 Richards Bay..enjoys a subtropical climate, with hot humid summers and warm, mild winters. Categories » †4. Anatomy. Soft, delicate. Only in mild mother at mother n.¹ 11. Obsolete. rare. 5. a. Of food, drink, or tobacco: not sharp, strong, or hot in flavour; not pungent. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > taste and flavour > insipidity > [adjective] wallowc897 smatchless?c1225 unsavoury?c1225 fresha1398 savourlessa1398 wearish1398 wershed1398 fond?c1430 unsavoured1435 palled1440 mildc1450 walsh1513 wallowish1548 dead1552 waterish1566 cold1585 flatten1594 seasonless1595 wersha1599 blown1600 flash1601 fatuous1608 tasteless1611 flat1617 insipid1620 ingustable1623 flashy1625 flatted1626 saltless1633 gustless1636 remiss1655 rheumatical1655 untasteable1656 vapid1656 exolete1657 distasted1662 vappous1673 insulse1676 toothless1679 mawkisha1697 intastable1701 waugh1703 impoignant1733 flavourless1736 instimulating1740 deadish1742 mawky1755 brineless1791 wishy-washy1791 keestless1802 shilpit1814 wish-washy1814 sapidless1821 silent1826 slushy1839 bland1878 spendsavour1879 wish-wash1896 dolled1917 spiceless1980 c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 4824 (MED) Was neuir no mede ne no milke so mild vndire heuen. 1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry ii. f. 58^v The smoother the leafe is, the mileder and the sweeter is the roote. 1768 I. Bickerstaff Lionel & Clarissa i. ii. 6 Why one bottle [of hock] won't hurt you man, this is old and as mild as milk. 1845 E. Acton Mod. Cookery iv. 145 Mild Ragout of Garlic... By changing very frequently the water in which it is boiled, the root will be deprived of its naturally pungent flavour and smell, and rendered extremely mild. 1880 Harper's Mag. June 25/2 There is no easier way of solving a social problem than through the medium of a mild and fragrant cigar and a pousse-café. 1907 Daily Chron. 16 July 4/4 British cheese should be mild, nutty, and salvy. c1934 D. Thomas Coll. Lett. (1987) 109 I am allowed a pipe—mild tobacco, not too much. 1973 E. David in WineMine 25 58/1 2 thin slices of mild cooked ham. 1997 Sci. Amer. June 22/1 The U.S. is now in the seventh decade of a lung cancer epidemic that started with the introduction of milder, more inhalable cigarettes near the turn of the century. b. spec. of ale or beer. In early use apparently: free from acidity, not sour or stale. Now: not strongly flavoured with hops (opposed to bitter). Also in to draw it mild at draw v. Phrases 11. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > [adjective] > mild mild1550 1550 in Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS: Var. Coll. (1907) IV. 220 It is agreed..that bere of the best shalbe solde noo derer then 22d. the barell, and mylde bere for 18d. the barell. 1626 F. Bacon Sylua Syluarum §52 A good draught of Milde Beer. 1717 M. Prior Alma ii. 203 Suppose your eyes sent equal rays Upon two distant pots of ale, Not knowing which was mild or stale. 1783 J. O'Keeffe Brown Jug (song) in Poor Soldier i This brown jug that now foams with mild ale..Was once Toby Filpot. 1818 W. Kitchiner Cook's Oracle (ed. 2) 502 Cool Tankard, or Beer Cup. A quart of mild ale, a glass of white wine, one of brandy [etc.]. 1886 ‘J. Bickerdyke’ Curiosities Ale & Beer 391 A pint..of mild beer, half a pint of brandy [etc.]. 1889 A. Barnard Noted Breweries I. 357 Cellars..for racking and storing mild ales. 1949 ‘G. Orwell’ Nineteen Eighty-four i. viii. 90 When I was a young man, mild beer—wallop we used to call it—was fourpence a pint. 1969 Beer & Cider (Know the Drink) 32/1 Brown Ale, sometimes called ‘Home-brewed’. Dark and usually rather sweet. It is the bottled equivalent of mild ale and is a good mixer with it. 1997 Baltimore Mag. Aug. 47/1 The Marble Golden Ale is pale, mild, and sweetish, while the Stockade Amber Ale is a shade darker and a hint hoppier; neither should alarm first-time brewpubbers. c. Of an illness or pain: not severe. ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > characteristics > [adjective] > mild or curable recoverable1585 schetical1666 mild1684 schetic1706 benign1743 benignant1897 weak1899 avirulent1900 1684 tr. T. Bonet Guide Pract. Physician xiv. 509 Upon the first Blandiment of the Fomentation the pain grows milder. 1696 J. Pechey tr. T. Sydenham Whole Wks. v. vi. 210 The end of the Year 75; at which time the Small-Pox, and the continual Fevers, their Companions..now growing mild, seemed to be now going off. 1744 G. Berkeley Siris (ESTC T72826) §3 Others had it [sc. small-pox] in the mildest manner. 1800 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 4 187 The inoculated Cow-Pox is a much milder and safer disease than the inoculated Small-Pox. 1843 T. Watson Lect. Princ. & Pract. Physic I. xi. 709 When the paroxysm thus postpones, the disease is growing milder. 1897 Arch. Surg. 8 230 A mild attack of syphilis occurred, not..followed by reminders. 1955 Sci. News Let. 9 July 25/3 Brucellosis is a bacterial disease contracted in a mild but persistent form by the drinking of raw milk. 1992 Woman 7 Dec. 16/3 During mild attacks, all that may be necessary is to give the child paracetamol. 6. Of light or a luminous body: shining softly, lambent. Also in extended use. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > light > intensity of light > [adjective] > somewhat bright or mildly radiant brightsome1548 brightish1584 milda1645 a1645 E. Waller To Young Lady Lucy Sidney 10 The rosy morne resignes her light, And milder glory to the Noon. 1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued II. i. xviii. 273 The Governour of the Universe is a more discernible object,..cloathed with milder rays of glory. 1820 J. Keats Lamia i, in Lamia & Other Poems 25 A silver lamp, whose phosphor glow Reflected in the slabbed steps below, Mild as a star in water. 1832 F. H. Standish Maid of Jaen 21 The moon's mild orb was shining seen. 1883 Harper's Mag. July 273/2 The moonbeams streamed through the narrow windows into the room, and fell in broad strips of light upon the stony floor, diffusing a mild and mellow lustre in some parts. 1994 Independent on Sunday 17 July 15/5 Islington Person shines instead with a mild political effulgence, placing high value on what Professor A.H. Halsey calls koinonia, the fellowship of sharing. 7. a. Of a medicine, cleaning agent, etc.: not powerful or violent in effect; not causing severe side effects; not harsh or irritant. †Of a pathological secretion: not irritant (obsolete). ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > healing > medicines or physic > [adjective] > relating to powers or effects of drugs > mild lithec1400 gentle1534 benign1638 mild1652 unirritant1822 bland1835 soft1959 1652 N. Culpeper Eng. Physitian Enlarged 12 The milde Arsmart is good against hot Imposthumes. 1676 R. Wiseman Severall Chirurg. Treat. ii. vi. (R.) If too mild detergents caused the flesh to grow lax and spongy, then more powerful driers are required. 1732 J. Arbuthnot Pract. Rules of Diet i. 257 Anti-acids of a milder Kind. 1781 W. Cowper Charity 502 Most satirists are indeed a public scourge; Their mildest physic is a farrier's purge. 1822 J. M. Good Study Med. IV. 77 The matter discharged is whitish and mild, producing no excoriation..or other disquiet. 1831 W. Youatt Horse x. 171 A very mild dose of physic. 1899 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. VIII. 614 The milder form of sulphur lotion is preferable. 1925 Woman's World (Chicago) Apr. 34/2 (advt.) Wash new inlaid linoleum as soon as laid with a mild soap. 1951 A. Grollman Pharmacol. & Therapeutics xix. 387 Calomel..formerly enjoyed wide popularity as a mild cathartic. 1989 Which? Aug. 379/1 They're scrubbable, so you can use a mild abrasive and a soft brush to remove marks. 1991 S. Constantine Hermetech 272 Good. Let her eat lunch and then give her a mild tranquilliser. b. Chemistry. Of an alkali: not caustic (now historical); (hence) neutral or carbonated.Following Joseph Black ( De Humero Acido a Cibis Orto, et Magnesia Alba, 1754) English chemists realized that the difference between caustic and non-caustic alkalies was due to the fact that the latter contained a ‘fixed air’, later identified as carbon dioxide; hence the extension of meaning. ΚΠ 1791 Edinb. New Dispensatory (ed. 3) 381 Mild fixed alkali is..considerably deliquescent. 1794 R. Kirwan Elements Mineral. (ed. 2) I. 6 Mild Calx (so I call lime united with fixed air). 1799 R. Kirwan Geol. Ess. 149 The limestone of Malta contains both calcareous earth and magnesia, but most probably in a mild state. 1805 W. Saunders Treat. Mineral Waters (ed. 2) 43 The mild or carbonated ammonia, will decompose all the earthy salts by double affinity. 1820 T. Tredgold Elem. Princ. Chem. x. 166 Quicklime..has a powerful effect in hastening the decomposition of wood... Mild lime (carbonate of lime) has not this effect. 1901 M. Foster Lect. Hist. Physiol. 233 Black made the notable observation that ordinary or mild lime lost in weight when it was burnt into caustic lime. 1922 T. M. Lowry Inorg. Chem. iv. 48 A third alkali was prepared by heating sal-ammoniac with mild soda or potash. 1940 G. H. J. Adlam & L. S. Price Higher School Certificate Inorg. Chem. (ed. 2) xxii. 176 Sodium hydroxide is also made by ‘causticizing’ a solution of mild soda (sodium carbonate) with good quicklime. 1964 A. J. Ihde Devel. Mod. Chem. 27 He further observed that the magnesia (MgO) and the quicklime (CaO)..reacted with solutions of mild alkalies and formed magnesia alba and chalk once more. 8. Of physical exercise, a fight, etc.: moderate, light; not very violent. Of a game: not unduly strenuous or competitive. Of amusement or recreation: not boisterous or exuberant. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adjective] > specifically of exercise or amusement mild1831 1831 W. Youatt Horse x. 171 Mild exercise should be used. 1878 ‘G. Eliot’ Let. 8 Aug. (1956) VII. 54 My little man..fights resolutely against these ills..having mild games of tennis. 1882 A. Bain James Mill 388 There should also be social amusements of a mild character, such as to promote cheerfulness rather than profuse merriment. 1916 A. Bennett These Twain ii. xiv. 271 ‘Shall we knock the balls about a bit?’ They began a mild game of croquet. 1956 I. Murdoch Flight from Enchanter xi. 155 She knew that she could not oppose her will to that of Mischa in any direct combat, she could not propose even the mildest skirmish. 1987 C. Achebe Anthills of Savannah iv. 39 A mild scuffle began right in front of me. 9. a. Chiefly regional. Of soil, wood, etc.: soft, easy to work. Cf. the earlier mild steel n. at Compounds 2. ΚΠ 1852 C. W. Hoskyns Talpa xix. 163 This'll be mild enough for anything presently; you don't call this a stiff soil? 1875 T. Laslett Timber & Timber Trees xiv. 84 The Modena, Roman, and Sardinian [Oaks] are what the workmen call milder in character—that is to say, they are easier to work, and a little less hard than the former [kinds]. 1880 R. Jefferies Round about Great Estate ix. 164 These old French burrs be the best stone; they be hard, but they be mild and takes the peck well. 1936 Forestry 10 39 The exceptionally mild timber from Spessart, in Germany, is the product of this species. †b. Physics. Capable of being moulded or deformed without breaking; = malleable adj. 1. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > materials > types of material generally > [adjective] > mouldable or workable freec1300 malleablec1395 pliablec1475 workable1545 hammerable1611 mouldable1626 soluble1650 kind1747 plastic1791 temperable1841 mild1878 manipulable1881 1878 J. C. Maxwell in Encycl. Brit. VI. 312/1 A body which can have its form permanently changed without any flaw or break taking place is called mild. When the force required is small the body is said to be soft; when it is great the body is said to be tough. †B. adv. = mildly adv. Chiefly poetic. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [adverb] mildOE methelyOE mildlyOE meeklyc1175 mansuetelyc1429 placidly1635 impetulantly1821 unfrowardly1869 the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > [adverb] lithelyc897 softeOE mildOE methelyOE mildlyOE mansuetelyc1429 gently1525 gentle1548 tenderfully1640 laxly1785 placably1797 unfrowardly1869 OE Crist I 249 Þu þisne middangeard milde geblissa þurh ðinne hercyme, hælende Crist. OE Metrical Psalm Fragments (Junius 121) lxxix. 18 Gehweorf us, mægna god, and us milde æteow þinne andwlitan. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 110 And thus the Godlike Angel answerd milde . View more context for this quotation 1730 J. Thomson Autumn in Seasons 175 The pale deluge..streaming mild O'er the sky'd mountain to the shadowy vale. 1739 C. Wesley in J. Wesley & C. Wesley Hymns & Sacred Poems ii. 207 Mild he lays his Glory by, Born—that Man no more may die. 1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 443 As oft As the sun peeps and vernal airs breathe mild. 1882 T. Hardy Two on Tower III. ii. 46 If you'll deal mild with us a moment. C. n.¹ †1. A person who is gentle or conciliatory in character or disposition. Cf. sense A. 1d. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > calmness > meekness or mildness > [noun] > person or creature mildeOE lambc1000 eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) xxiv. 8 (9) Dirigit mites in iudicio : gereceð ða mildan in dome. OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) 13 Þa gehyrsuman and þa mildan and þa geþyldigan he sceal witnian and halsian. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 113 Drihten..on-hefð þa mildan [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 ahefð þa eadmodan]. c1450 (?a1400) Wars Alexander (Ashm.) 235 ‘Haile, maister,’ quod þat myld, & made him to sytt..hire be-syde. c1480 (a1400) St. Alexis 103 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 444 Syne dyliuere was þat myld, thru godis helpe, of a knaf chyld. a1505 R. Henryson Annunciation 13 in Poems (1981) 154 This message mervale gert that myld. 1813 H. G. Knight Alashtar iii. xiii Let the weak bewail! Well may the mild, the woman-hearted fail. 2. a. A mild-tasting ale or beer; (now esp.) a kind of dark beer not strongly flavoured with hops. Cf. sense A. 5b. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > [noun] oil of barley1638 oil of malt1638 malt liquor1693 mild1712 malt1718 malt-bree1780 heavy wet1821 heavy1823 1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 317 Took a Pot of Mother Cob's Mild. 1894 A. Morrison Martin Hewitt ii. 63 ‘Had his glass o'beer, has he?’..‘Has two glasses of mild a-day... Never puts on flesh.’ 1944 D. Thomas Let. 21 Sept. in Sel. Lett. (1966) 267 It is time for the Black Lion But there is only Buckley's unfriskly Mild. 1963 Times 25 May 9/7 ‘But t'brig isn't t'world’, a sewing-shop overlooker says over his gill of mild. 1979 T. Foster Dr. Foster's Bk. Beer iii. 54 The flavour of mild encompasses a wide variety of tastes. 1992 T. Davies Modest Pageant 109 Can I have..a black and tan, half a shandy, a pint of bitter, a pint of mild, a mild and bitter mixed. b. mild-and-bitter n. a mixture of mild and bitter beer. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > ale or beer > mixed drinks of ale or beer > [noun] three-threads1698 pap-in1748 half-and-half1756 porter cup1790 shandygaff1853 mixed ale1864 cooper1871 black and tan1881 four-half1884 mother-in-law1884 shandy1888 smiler1892 mild-and-bitter1933 red-eye1960 1933 D. L. Sayers Hangman's Holiday 157 Half of mild-and-bitter, please. 1951 E. Hyams Sylvester xxiv. 121 The chaps in the local, drinking a pint of mild and bitter. 1957 J. Braine Room at Top ii. 22 We used to..live on onions and cheese washed down with mild-and-bitter. 1976 Cumberland & Westmorland Herald 4 Dec. 12/4 A pub, near Kirkstone Pass, where the young lady hostess served a very good measure of mild and bitter! Compounds C1. Parasynthetic and adverbial. † mild-aspected adj. Obsolete ΚΠ 1597 M. Drayton Englands Heroicall Epist. f. 18 That blessed night, that mild-aspected howre, Wherein thou mad'st escape out of the Towre. † mild-aspecting adj. Obsolete ΚΠ 1601 J. Weever Mirror of Martyrs sig. C6^v On Sea the mild-aspecting heauens would guide me. ?a1603 E. Grymeston Miscelanea (1604) vi. sig. D Th' vnchaunging proiects of the king of heauen! Th' one sterne of looke, th' other milde aspecting. † mild-brewed adj. Obsolete ΚΠ 1880 Hints & Helps Everyday Emergencies 9 1. Abstain from all spirits and dram-drinking... 2. When mild-brewed beer agrees keep to it as a beverage (at your meals only). 1905 W. L. Courtney Father Time & Childr. in Queen's Carol 95 October comes to give men cheer, With purple grapes and mild-brewed beer! mild-cured adj. ΚΠ 1884 Times (Weekly ed.) 31 Oct. 7/4 Mild cured butter. 1958 T. N. Morris in C. Singer et al. Hist. Technol. V. 32 Mechanical refrigeration..made possible the production of mild-cured and leaner bacon. 1984 J. Grigson Brit. Cookery 122 Today, York ham has become a generalised term, meaning no more than a mild cured ham. mild-eyed adj. ΚΠ c1794 S. Favell in S. T. Coleridge Coll. Lett. (1956) I. 56 And you, Ye mild-eyed Forms! 1914 E. R. Burroughs Tarzan of Apes xx. 283 Jane Porter had been watching his antics in mild eyed surprise. 1991 V. Porter Cattle (BNC) 44 This is the mild-eyed breed which produces possibly the best beef in the world. mild-faced adj. ΚΠ 1823 R. Bloomfield Hazelwood-Hall i. iii. 11 But what is the matter with my little mild-faced Mary? She does not look well. 1866 W. D. Howells Venetian Life vii A very mild-faced old priest. 1917 E. Wharton Summer iii. 44 She looked with abhorrence at the long dingy rows of books, the sheep-nosed Minerva on her black pedestal, and the mild-faced young man in a high stock whose effigy pined above her desk. 1995 Guardian 23 Sept. (Outlook section) 26/5 The show's leader, mild-faced, stocky Luke Cresswell, starts brushing the floor. mild-flavoured adj. ΚΠ 1841 Southern Literary Messenger 7 482/2 Besides wine, its principal staple, this island produces rye, maize and wheat, some arrowroot,..pears and peaches, and a very large mild flavored onion. 1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 29 Mar. (Suppl.) 8/2 For the next omelette, which comes from the Savoy Mountains where French Gruyère cheese is made, you really need the mild sweetness of the true Gruyère. Other mild-flavoured cheeses can be used, but Gruyère is far the best. 1995 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 14 Jan. f3/2 A creamy ragout of crosnes (small, crisp mild-flavoured tubers that look a bit like seashell pasta). mild-looking adj. ΚΠ 1820 C. R. Maturin Melmoth I. v. 204 He was a grave, but mild-looking ecclesiastic. 1892 Bulletin (Sydney) 9 Jan. 10/1 The gaol at the ‘Pivot’ is a sort of Benevolent Asylum for used-up assassins, and in the ‘lifer’ yard of that drowsy institution you can see groups of mild-looking ancients. 1955 W. H. Auden Shield of Achilles ii. 38 Mild-looking middle class boys Who read the comic strips. 1987 A. Dillard Amer. Childhood (1990) ii. 142 One book included a photograph of a mild-looking hobbyist in his basement workshop. mild-mannered adj. ΚΠ 1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xvi. 284 Let her bee milde-worded and milde-manered. 1821 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto III xli. 23 He was the mildest manner'd man That ever scuttled ship or cut a throat. 1911 Encycl. Brit. XVII. 837/2 The Mashona..are in general a peaceful, mild-mannered people. 1988 Star (Tarrytown, N.Y.) 12 Apr. 2/2 We think he'll fit in well up here because he's always so mild-mannered, pleasant and soft-spoken. mild-mooned adj. rare ΚΠ 1820 J. Keats Lamia i, in Lamia & Other Poems 12 A deep volcanian yellow took the place Of all her milder-mooned body's grace. 1939 V. Patterson Wise as Goose i. iii. 40 It was a warm night, and the river lay glowing beside the road under a mild-mooned sky. † mild-persuading adj. Obsolete ΚΠ 1601 J. Weever Mirror of Martyrs sig. D3^v In mild-perswading words and deedes. mild-scented adj. ΚΠ 1771 J. Hill Fossils 322 (table) Colour. Pale yellow Qualities. mild scentedPlace. Aix la Chapelle. 1821 S. F. Gray Nat. Arrangem. Brit. Plants II. 417 Mild-scented cut-leaved wild lettuce. 1992 She (BNC) May 136 To serve, squeeze some of mild-scented garlic insides over each potato, add salt if wished, and pop into your mouth while hot. 2009 D. Brenner & S. Scanniello Rose by any other Name 260/2 ‘First Kiss’: The mild-scented pink floribunda is a child of ‘Simplicity’. mild-seeming adj. ΚΠ a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. sig. N3^v The sheep, [gave] mild-seeming face. 1872 M. D. Conway Republican Superstitions iv. 103 It was a mild-seeming ghost of a King, this Presidency, when it stood asking admission into the Constitution. 1991 T. Mo Redundancy of Courage (BNC) 325 They were nothing if not astute, those mild-seeming old men with their erect bearings, gentle manners, and hands reeking of innocent blood. 2015 A. Perry Corridors of Night i. 14 He was a mild-seeming man, several years younger than his brother. mild-spirited adj. ΚΠ 1736 J. Arbuthnot Law is Bottomless Pit in Misc. II. v. 20 The Neigbours reported that he was hen-pecked, which was impossible, by such a mild-spirited Woman as his Wife was. 1827 J. G. Whittier Restoration in Haverhill Gaz. 27 Jan. 1/1 To thee shall be given Mild-spirited peace, and unchangeable fame. 1998 P. Liddle in H. Cecil & P. H. Liddle in At 11th Hour iv. 55 A mild-spirited private in the 14th Battalion Royal Fusiliers, H.S. Innes, revealed in his letters as an unwilling conscript, [etc.]. 2008 A. E. Kinser in A. O'Reilly Feminist Mothering 132 After we divorced, I married someone who is not mild-spirited. mild-spoken adj. ΚΠ a1618 J. Sylvester tr. J. Bertaut Parl. Vertues Royall in tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Divine Weekes & Workes (1621) 859 Hee, more discreet, and milder-spoken, farr, Replyes: My Sonne, sure verie few there are (Yea of the wisest, who best vnderstand) That easily can answer thy demand. 1727 Art Speaking in Publick vi. 84 An Orator ought not to be too Remiss, neither in his Action, nor too Mild-spoken. 1865 A. Trollope Can you forgive Her? II. xiii. 100 George would not become soft and mild-spoken even by a death-bed side, and it would be likely enough that the Squire would curse his heir with his dying breath. 1976 Amer. Hist. Rev. 81 365/2 To bold-tongued law students and to mild-spoken historians and political scientists. † mild-sprited adj. Obsolete ΚΠ 1607 T. Campion Discr. Maske Ld. Hayes sig. B4^v Mild sprited Zephyrus haile. mild-tempered adj. ΚΠ 1747 tr. J. Astruc Academical Lect. Fevers 169 A cold mild-tempered easy patient. 1872 Appletons' Jrnl. 13 Apr. 416/1 William was long in the East-India service, kindly, mild-tempered, and genial, with none of his father's passionate nature or literary genius. 1904 J. London Sea-wolf xxx. 290 It was a rookery which had never been raided by the hunters, and in consequence the seals were mild-tempered and at the same time unafraid. 1982 S. K. Penman Sunne in Splendour (1984) i. v. 65 Henri who was so poor a horseman he must be provided with mild-tempered geldings. mild-worded adj. ΚΠ 1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xvi. 284 Let her bee milde-worded and milde-manered. 1872 Cornhill Mag. Apr. 438 It reminded him of the diabolical notes which accompany the mild-worded serenade in Don Giovanni. 1920 B. Pearl Sarah & her Daughter ii. i. 226 Louis' roughness of manner was refreshing rather than offensive. He was loud-spoken, but mild-worded. 1969 Sun (Lowell, Mass.) 18 Apr. 1/2 The relatively mild-worded statement, which called on North Korea ‘to prevent similar incidents in the future’, had left unaswered questions [etc.]. C2. mild steel n. steel which contains only a low percentage of carbon, and is tough and easily worked but not readily tempered or hardened. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > metal > steel > [noun] > other types of steel hardened steel1557 shear steel1815 blister-steel1831 mild steel1850 carbon steel1856 Bessemer steel1864 soft centre1865 silicon steel1882 weld-steel1884 rimmed steel1920 1850 Sci. Amer. 25 May 288/3 In converting iron into steel, a hundred weight of iron combines with from 4 to 12 ounces of carbon; the former proportion producing very mild steel, and the latter being the maximum dose for any useful purpose. 1868 F. H. Joynson Metals in Constr. 90 What is called in the trade ‘homogeneous iron’ is a species of ‘mild-steel’, and has been introduced by a Sheffield firm. 1939 Archit. Rev. 85 298 (caption) An assistant's desk of Australian silky oak on an enamelled mild steel tube frame. 1966 McGraw-Hill Encycl. Sci. & Technol. (rev. ed.) XIII. 90/1 Steels containing about 0.25% carbon are classed as mild steels. 1992 Mech. Products & Tools July 1346/1 Packs of plain brass and mild steel (zinc plated) studding. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022). † mildv. Forms: Old English mildian, Middle English mildi, Middle English mylde, 1600s mild. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: mild adj. Etymology: < mild adj.Compare also Old English gemildgian to make mild or calm (compare sense 2), a parallel formation with prefixation (see y- prefix) and -(i)gian , suffix forming verbs from adjectives and nouns (compare -y suffix¹):eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) lxxxviii. 8 (10) Tu dominaris potestati maris motum autem fluctuum eius tu mitigas : ðu waldes maehte sæs onstyrenisse soðlice yða his ðu gemildgas.eOE Junius Psalter xciii. 13 Ut mitiges eum a diebus malis: ðæt ðu gemildgige hine fram dagum yflum. Obsolete. 1. intransitive. To become mild or gentle. ΚΠ OE Prudentius Glosses (Boulogne 189) in H. D. Meritt Old Eng. Prudentius Glosses (1959) 87 Mansuescit : mildode. 2. transitive. To make mild or gentle (a person's mood, etc.); to calm; to humble. Also reflexive. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > kindness > gentleness or mildness > treat gently [verb (transitive)] > make gentle or mild soft?c1225 mild1340 melta1382 softenc1410 mollifya1450 amollish1474 amolify1483 ameeka1500 mellow1593 dulcify1647 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 117 We byeþ þe more ymylded and þe dreduoller. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 177 (MED) Þeruore ssel þe zeneȝere him mildi ase moche ase ha may beuore god. a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. clxxxxvii. f. cxix This message mylded nothyng the kynges courage. 1628 O. Felltham Resolves: 2nd Cent. xvi. sig. L^v As for Man: it [sc. the Gospel] teaches him to tread on Cottons, mild's his wilder temper. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2002; most recently modified version published online December 2021). < n.²c1390n.³1701adj.adv.n.¹eOEv.OE
随便看	dark night of the soul dark of the moon dark over bill's mother's dark over bill'will's mother's dark pool dark reaction dark red silver ore dark rum dark satanic mills dark sentinel dark side dark slide dark smoke dark space dark star dark tent dark thirty dark tourism dark tourist dark triad dark web dark well dark, hard sentence dark-adapted dark-boughed

† mildn.2

mildn.3

mildadj.adv.n.1

Compounds

† mildv.

† mildn.²

mildn.³

mildadj.adv.n.¹