kid gloves

NOUN

tact and gentleness

Synonyms

WEAK

delicacy fastidiousness gentle handling gentleness good taste kid-glove treatment leniency light hand light rein refinement tact tolerance velvet glove

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Meanwhile, Olympic athletes from the streets of Milan to the far reaches of the Dolomites are all learning an important lesson: If you win a medal, treat it with kid gloves.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 10, 2026

"From now on, the kid gloves are off - it's bare-knuckle stuff."

From BBC • Jul. 8, 2025

But the idea of handling such a gleeful provocateur with kid gloves seems to somehow miss the point of De Palma’s work.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 3, 2024

Pittsburgh has used kid gloves with Jones at times, though he also threw a career-high 96 pitches over seven brilliant innings against Colorado last weekend.

From Seattle Times • May 10, 2024

But he was high-strung, nervous, someone you often had to treat with kid gloves to settle him down, like a racehorse.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown