6 uses
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Definition
done in a careful or unsure way (indicating a lack of confidence in exactly what will happen)
- This, finally, was what had pained his mother most, the lost years standing between them, their words so tentative and formal where ease and love should have been.p. 392.7
tentative = cautious
- Caroline walked tentatively, floorboards creaking with every step, but no one appeared.p. 24.6
- It was not until they left the office, stepping tentatively into the chill, damp air of the next afternoon, that the loss had finally penetrated.p. 37.9
- A silence followed, and then Bree broke it awkwardly, tentatively, by offering Norah the last piece of buttered bread.p. 44.2
- Tentatively, now, she pushed the silver lever.p. 83.3
- Paul watched his mother embrace his sister and give Phoebe her bouquet; he watched Phoebe's tentative hug in return.p. 398.1
tentatively = in a cautious unsure manner
tentative = cautious
There are no more uses of "tentative" in The Memory Keeper’s Daughter.
Typical Usage
(best examples)