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solicitude

solicitude

3 8.8
Care and worry that people show for someone, often more than needed
  • noun
  • /səˈlɪsɪˌtud/
translation icon : solicitud
  • I'm rather a sensitive man, and I prefer not to be the object of public solicitude.
  • great solicitude
  • form of solicitude
  • special solicitude

Examples

  • Your solicitude for the boy's health is most admirable.

  • I recognized that my solicitude for Marjie was above and beyond the ordinary.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • Such solicitude is very touching.

  • Your solicitude for the boy's health is most admirable.

  • The duke invites the young man to confess with the solicitude of a father.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Marianne interrupted to ask, with sisterly solicitude, "Your eye, Patrick -- is it all right?"

    Fiction book (1997)
  • On the question of development, the encyclical demonstrates the Church's great solicitude toward the poverty of masses of people.

    Academic text (2010)
  • "You'll miss the ocean, won't you?" She looked up at him, reveling in his solicitude.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Marianne interrupted to ask, with sisterly solicitude, "Your eye, Patrick -- is it all right?"

  • I recognized that my solicitude for Marjie was above and beyond the ordinary.

Synonyms

solicitousness
vssolicitude
1 9.1

Care and worry about someone's comfort or needs

is an internal excessive feeling of care rather than a visible action

Antonyms

71 4.6

Lack of interest or concern about something

43 6.2

A lack of interest or care about things

How Concerned

solicitude
3 8.8
concern
1.5

Surface Forms

solicitude singular
solicitudes plural

Morphology

solicitude = solicit (semi-transparent) = solicit + tude

Formally looks like 'solicit' + '-tude', but the modern verb 'solicit' (to request) differs in meaning from 'solicitude' (care); the noun is more closely related to 'solicitous', so learners may be misled.

Etymology

The word solicitude comes from the Latin root sollicit- meaning 'to worry' or 'to trouble'. So solicitude is care mixed with worry, the worried, watchful kind of concern someone shows for another person.