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com·pas·sion·ate (kəm-păshə-nĭt)
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adj.
1. Feeling or showing compassion; sympathetic.
2. Granted to an individual because of an emergency or other unusual circumstances: compassionate military leave.
tr.v. (-nāt′) com·pas·sion·at·ed, com·pas·sion·at·ing, com·pas·sion·ates
To pity.
com·passion·ate·ly adv.
com·passion·ate·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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