Comfortingly

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a way that brings emotional relief and reassurance to others experiencing difficulty
2. Done so as to provide a soothing presence and alleviate feelings of distress or discomfort
3. In a way that eases emotional pain and offers reassurance during troubled times

Etymology: "Comfortingly" is an adverb built from "comforting" and the suffix "-ly," so its history is essentially the history of that suffix. The adjective "comforting" comes from "comfort" plus the participial ending "-ing," and the "-ly" that turns it into an adverb has a much longer ancestry. It descends from a Proto-Germanic suffix "-līkaz," meaning "having the form or appearance of," which is itself rooted in an ancient Indo-European word for "body" or "form." That suffix passed through Proto-West Germanic and into Old English as "-līċe," which was attached freely to adjectives to describe the manner of an action. Over the Middle English period it worn down to "-ly," and English speakers have been attaching it to adjectives ever since. The ending that began as a word about bodily appearance now simply marks how something is done, so "comfortingly" means, in effect, "in a manner that comforts."

Synonyms: soothingly, reassuringly, calmly, gently, placatingly