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Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day for November 3, 2021 is:

lenient • LEEN-yunt  • adjective

Lenient means “not harsh, severe, or strict.”

// The teacher was lenient in her grading after the holiday break.

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Examples:

“When it comes to growing up, we’re all split into two camps: those with lenient parents and those with strict parents.” — Nicky Idika, PopBuzz, 8 May 2017

Did you know?

Lenient comes from lenis, the Latin word for “soft” or “mild.” It was originally applied to something soothing that relieved pain or stress; the related lenitive has the same meaning. Linguists also borrowed lenis to describe speech sounds that are softened—for instance, the “t” sound in gutter.