Library / English Dictionary

PALLIATE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Provide physical relief, as from pain

Example:

This pill will relieve your headaches

Synonyms:

alleviate; assuage; palliate; relieve

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "palliate" is one way to...):

ameliorate; amend; better; improve; meliorate (to make better)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "palliate"):

soothe (cause to feel better)

comfort; ease (lessen pain or discomfort; alleviate)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

palliation (easing the severity of a pain or a disease without removing the cause)

palliative (moderating pain or sorrow by making it easier to bear)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of

Example:

The circumstances extenuate the crime

Synonyms:

extenuate; mitigate; palliate

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "palliate" is one way to...):

apologise; apologize; excuse; rationalise; rationalize (defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

palliation (to act in such a way as to cause an offense to seem less serious)

Credits