a gentle affectionate stroking (or something resembling it); "he showered her with caresses"; "soft music was a fond caress"; "the caresses of the breeze played over his face"
touch or stroke lightly in a loving or endearing manner; "He caressed her face"; "They caressed in the back seat of the taxi"
total debits and credits are equal; "the books looked balanced"
being in a state of proper balance or equilibrium; "the carefully balanced seesaw"; "a properly balanced symphony orchestra"; "a balanced assessment of intellectual and cultural history"; "a balanced blend of whiskeys"; "the educated man shows a balanced development of all his powers"
abounding in or given to pompous or aphoristic moralizing; "too often the significant episode deteriorates into sententious conversation"- Kathleen Barnes