arbitrary vs gentle

arbitrary

noun
  • Anything arbitrary, such as an arithmetical value or a fee. 

adj
  • Not representative or symbolic; not iconic. 

  • Determined by independent arbiter. 

  • Determined by impulse rather than reason; heavy-handed. 

  • Based on individual discretion or judgment; not based on any objective distinction, perhaps even made at random. 

  • Any, out of all that are possible. 

gentle

adj
  • Soft and mild rather than hard or severe. 

  • Tender and amiable; of a considerate or kindly disposition. 

  • Polite and respectful rather than rude. 

  • Gradual rather than steep or sudden. 

  • Docile and easily managed. 

verb
  • To break; to tame; to domesticate. 

  • To soothe; to calm; to make gentle. 

  • To become gentle. 

noun
  • A trained falcon, or falcon-gentil. 

  • A maggot used as bait by anglers. 

How often have the words arbitrary and gentle occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )