caress
/kəˈrɛs
/verb [with object]
Touch or stroke gently or lovingly: she caressed the girl’s forehead figurative a gentle breeze caressed his skin (as adjective caressing) his caressing touch...
- When he finally reached it he touched its snow white feathers and caressed it gently.
- She was dressed in pale pink silk, her gown gently caressing the floor and her head adorned with a dainty, bejewelled crown.
- He smiled at me and pulled me to him, stroking my hair and caressing my face.
Synonyms
stroke, touch, fondle, brush, skim, pet, pat, nuzzle, kiss;
cuddle, embrace, hug
noun
A gentle or loving touch: she felt the caress of his breath on her cheek...
- With a caress far more gentle than any silk, he touched her tiny lips with his fingers after he lay her back down in the crib.
- She turned back to face him, as she felt his hand on her shoulder, his touch as light as the gentle caress of a flower.
- A soft sound, maybe a laugh, then fingers touched the nape of my neck in a gentle caress.
Synonyms
stroke, stroking, touch, touching, fondle, fondling, skim, pat, nuzzle, nuzzling, kiss;
cuddle, embrace, hug
Derivatives
caressingly
- He ran his fingers caressingly over his hair again.
- The serviceable yet soft material fell over her skin caressingly.
- I watch as he slides one hand vertically along the desk - slowly, caressingly.
Origin
Mid 17th century: from French caresser (verb), caresse (noun), from Italian carezza, based on Latin carus 'dear'.