"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."
— Proverbs 15:1 (NIV)
Proverbs 15:1 is the "a soft answer turneth away wrath" verse, one of the most quoted proverbs about tone in an argument. This page gives the verse, what the key words mean, where it sits in Proverbs 15, and a plain reading. For more on the theme, see Bible verses about anger, Bible verses about gentleness, and Love and anger.
Free PDF
Get the free 30 Days of Love Verses PDF
Sign up for the daily Bible verse email, and get the free 30 Days of Love Verses PDF. 30 Days of Love Verses · Open the PDF
The verse
The King James reads: "A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger."
"Gentle" (KJV "soft") is rak (H7390), tender or soft. "Answer" is ma'aneh (H4617), a reply. "Turns away" is shuwb (H7725), to turn back. "Wrath" is chemah (H2534), heat or rage. "Harsh" (KJV "grievous") is 'etseb (H6089), pain or hurt, so a harsh word is literally a word that hurts. "Word" is dabar (H1697), "stirs up" is 'alah (H5927), to make rise, and "anger" is 'aph (H639), a word that also means nostril, the picture of flared breathing.
Where it sits in Proverbs 15
The verses that follow keep talking about the mouth: "The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly" (Proverbs 15:2), and "The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit" (Proverbs 15:4). Later in the chapter: "A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel" (Proverbs 15:18).
What the verse is saying
In a tense moment, the way you answer can lower the heat or raise it. A gentle reply gives the other person's anger nothing to push against. A word meant to hurt gives it fuel.
Gentle does not mean weak or silent. Proverbs 25:15 says "a gentle tongue can break a bone," so a soft answer can still be firm and true. The proverb is about tone and timing, the same wisdom James gives: "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry" (James 1:19).
Questions people ask
What does Proverbs 15:1 say?
In the NIV it says, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." The KJV says, "A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger."
What does "a soft answer turneth away wrath" mean?
It means a calm, gentle reply can cool someone's anger instead of feeding it. The Hebrew word for "soft" means tender, the opposite of a reply meant to wound.
Does Proverbs 15:1 mean never disagreeing?
No. The verse is about how you answer, not whether you can say something hard. A gentle answer can still be honest. Proverbs 25:15 says a gentle tongue can break a bone.
How do you apply Proverbs 15:1 in marriage or family?
When an argument starts, slow down, lower your voice, and answer the real concern instead of the sharpest thing that was said. Choosing one gentle reply can change where the conversation goes.
What verses go with Proverbs 15:1?
James 1:19-20 (slow to speak and slow to anger), Proverbs 18:21 (life and death in the tongue), and Ephesians 4:29 (words that build others up) are close companions.
