tender

1 of 7

adjective

ten·​der ˈten-dər How to pronounce tender (audio)
Synonyms of tendernext
1
: marked by, responding to, or expressing the softer emotions : fond, loving
a tender lover
2
a
: showing care : considerate, solicitous
tender regard
b
: highly susceptible to impressions or emotions : impressionable
a tender conscience
3
a
: easily chewed : succulent
b
: having a soft or yielding texture : easily broken, cut, or damaged : delicate, fragile
tender feet
4
a
: sensitive to touch or palpation
the bruise was still tender
b
: sensitive to injury or insult : touchy
tender pride
c
: demanding careful and sensitive handling : ticklish
a tender situation
d
of a boat : easily tipped by an external force
5
a
: physically weak : not able to endure hardship
b
: immature, young
children of tender age
c
: incapable of resisting cold : not hardy
tender perennials
6
a
: appropriate or conducive to a delicate or sensitive constitution or character : gentle, mild
tender breeding
tender irony
b
: delicate or soft in quality or tone
never before heard the piano sound so tender—Elva S. Daniels
7
obsolete : dear, precious
tenderly adverb

tender

2 of 7

verb (1)

tendered; tendering ˈten-d(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce tender (audio)

transitive verb

1
: to present for acceptance : offer
tendered my resignation
2
: to make a tender of

intransitive verb

: to make a bid or tender

tender

3 of 7

noun (1)

often attributive
1
: an unconditional offer of money or service in satisfaction of a debt or obligation made to save a penalty or forfeiture for nonpayment or nonperformance
2
: an offer or proposal made for acceptance: such as
a
: an offer of a bid for a contract
b
: tender offer
3
: something that may be offered in payment
specifically : money

tender

4 of 7

noun (2)

: an often breaded strip of usually breast meat
chicken tenders
also : the tenderloin of a chicken

tender

5 of 7

noun (3)

tend·​er ˈten-dər How to pronounce tender (audio)
: one that tends: such as
a(1)
: a ship employed to attend other ships (as to supply provisions)
(2)
: a boat for communication or transportation between shore and a larger ship
(3)
: a warship that provides logistic support
b
: a car attached to a steam locomotive for carrying a supply of fuel and water

tender

6 of 7

verb (2)

tendered; tendering ˈten-d(ə-)riŋ How to pronounce tender (audio)

transitive verb

1
: to make tender : soften, weaken
2
archaic : to regard or treat with tenderness

intransitive verb

: to become tender

tender

7 of 7

noun (4)

obsolete
: consideration, regard

Synonyms

Adjective

Verb (1)

Noun (1)

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of tender in a Sentence

Adjective He gave her a tender look. She was tender and loving with her new child. Cook the pasta until it is just tender. Her wrist was swollen and tender.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Most bites are tender and moist, and can tip toward the salty side of well-seasoned, but that’s never been a complaint of mine. —Drew Jackson, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2024 Bake 40 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork. —Bhg Test Kitchen, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Apr. 2024 See all Example Sentences for tender 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tender.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English tendre, tender, borrowed from Anglo-French tendre, going back to Latin tener "soft, delicate (of persons or parts of the body), immature, yielding easily, sensitive," probably by metathesis from *terenos or *terunos, going back to Indo-European, whence also Greek térēn "soft, tender," Sanskrit taruṇa- "young, tender, fresh," Avestan tauruna- "young," (as noun) "boy"

Note: Macrobius (early 5th century), in his Saturnalia, quotes Favorinus (ca. 80-160 a.d.) as claiming that terenus meant mollis ("soft") in Sabine; this form would support the hypothesis of metathesis in Latin tener. Ernout and Meillet (Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine, 4th edition, Paris, 1979) reject this etymology without comment, citing instead a possible connection with the ten- of tenēre, tendere, tenuis (see tenant entry 1, tender entry 3, thin entry 1).

Verb (1)

Middle English tendren, probably in part derivative of tendur tender entry 3, in part borrowed from its source, Anglo-French tendre

Note: The apparent use of the Anglo-French nominalized infinitive as an inflected verb in Middle English is paralleled by render entry 2. Cf. tend entry 1, a more regular borrowing of the stem of the same verb, in a different sense.

Noun (1)

Middle English tendur "grant of a license," borrowed from Anglo-French tendre "offer, offer in satisfaction of a debt," noun derivative from infinitive of tendre "to stretch, hold out, offer (a suit, plea, money), grant," going back to Latin tendere "to extend outward, stretch, spread out, direct (one's course), aim (at a purpose)," going back to Indo-European *ten- "stretch, extend" + *-d- (or *-dh-), suffixal extension of uncertain origin — more at tenant entry 1

Note: See note at tenant entry 1. The original past participle of tendere is tentus, which would appear to continue an Indo-European verbal adjective *tn̥-tos, whence also Greek tatós, derived directly from the base *ten- rather than from *tend-. The form tentus was largely replaced by tensus, presumably from *tend-tos, a regular derivative of the new formation tend-.

Noun (2)

probably short for tenderloin

Noun (3)

tend entry 2 + -er entry 2

Verb (2)

Middle English tendren "to become tender, care for, be concerned about," derivative of tender, tendre tender entry 1

Noun (4)

probably noun derivative of tender entry 1 or of tender entry 6 in sense "to be solicitous of"

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3b

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Noun (1)

circa 1543, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1955, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1675, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun (4)

1598, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tender was in the 13th century

Phrases Containing tender

Dictionary Entries Near tender

tendenz

tender

tenderability

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Tender.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tender. Accessed 3 May. 2024.

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Kids Definition

tender

1 of 5 adjective
ten·​der ˈten-dər How to pronounce tender (audio)
1
: having a soft or yielding quality
tender steak
2
a
: physically weak : delicate
a tender plant
b
: immature, young
children of tender years
3
: loving, affectionate
a tender look
4
: showing care : considerate
5
: not harsh or stern : gentle, mild
tender irony
6
: sensitive to touch : very easily hurt
a tender bruise
7
: demanding careful and sensitive handling
a tender subject
tenderly adverb
tenderness noun

tender

2 of 5 verb
tendered; tendering
-d(ə-)riŋ
1
: to offer in payment
2
: to present for acceptance
tendered my resignation

tender

3 of 5 noun
1
: an offer of money in payment of a debt
2
: an offer made for acceptance
especially : a bid for a contract
3
: something that may by law be offered in payment
especially : money

tender

4 of 5 noun
tend·​er
ˈten-dər
: one that tends or takes care: as
a
: a ship used to attend other ships (as to supply food)
b
: a boat that carries passengers or freight between shore and a larger ship
c
: a car attached to a locomotive for carrying fuel and water

tender

5 of 5 noun
: an often breaded strip of usually breast meat
chicken tenders
Etymology

Adjective

Middle English tender "tender, fragile," from early French tendre (same meaning), from Latin tener "having a soft yielding texture, tender, young"

Verb

Middle English tendren "to offer in payment," from early French tendre "to stretch out, offer," from Latin tendere "to stretch" — related to tense entry 2

Noun

from tend "to look after" and -er, noun suffix

Noun

probably short for tenderloin

Medical Definition

tender

adjective
ten·​der ˈten-dər How to pronounce tender (audio)
: sensitive to touch or palpation
tender skin
a tender palpable kidney
tenderness
-nəs How to pronounce tender (audio)
noun

Legal Definition

tender

1 of 2 noun
ten·​der
1
a
: an act or instance of tendering
b
: an unconditional offer of payment or performance (as in discharge of an obligation) that is coupled with a manifestation of willingness and ability to follow through (as by producing a check)
c
: tender of delivery
sufficient tender
2
: something offered in payment or performance
specifically : money
the proper amount of tender required
see also legal tender

tender

2 of 2 verb

transitive verb

1
a
: to make a tender of
tender goods
tender delivery
tender payment
tender performance
b
: to offer as an amount in settlement of a claim by an injured party against an insured

Note: An insurance company might be obligated to tender the limits of a policy to an injured party when a higher amount is likely to be awarded at trial.

2
: to extend for acceptance or consideration (as in proof of something) especially in a proceeding
tender a plea to the court
tender an issue
3
: to offer for sale
tender shares

intransitive verb

: to offer securities for sale
make an informed decision to tender
Etymology

Verb

Anglo-French tendre to offer, propose for acceptance, literally, to stretch, hold out, from Old French, from Latin tendere

More from Merriam-Webster on tender

Nglish: Translation of tender for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of tender for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tender

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