Definition
calm, still, and quiet
Origin of the word
The word tranquil comes from the Latin word ‘tranquillus’ meaning ‘calm’. Its first recorded use in English was in the mid-15th century.
Examples
Tranquil is a word that refers to a sense of peacefulness. It is an adjective that can describe a feeling of relaxed comfort (‘The new mother felt tranquil and serene as she watched her baby sleep’) or a place that is quiet and calm (‘He preferred a quiet holiday, leaving the city to spend time at his tranquil lakeside cottage’).
Science has proved that tranquil, natural spaces can promote relaxation, stress relief and perhaps even a longer life. However, as people increasingly migrate to cities, our world is becoming more and more urban; tranquil green spaces are harder to find. Thankfully, researchers have developed a tool to help people measure the tranquillity of a place using a number of factors to help identify existing peaceful sites within cities and to offer tips on how cities can improve these spaces for residents.
Within cities, examples of tranquil spaces include town squares that have been closed off to vehicle traffic with trees and grass added to encourage pedestrians, side streets or avenues lined with trees, and places that are close to a body of water, like a lake or a stream. Improvements that can be made to existing spaces to make them feel more tranquil include planting grass, trees and shrubs, adding a fountain or other water feature, and building fences or barriers to block out man-made noise.
Quotations
“All of us might wish at times that we lived in a more tranquil world, but we don’t. And if our times are difficult and perplexing, so are they challenging and filled with opportunity.”
(Robert Kennedy)
Synonyms:
peaceful, serene
View the full definition in the Macmillan Dictionary.
