assuage

American  

[uh-sweyj, uh-sweyzh] / əˈsweɪdʒ, əˈsweɪʒ /

verb (used with object)

assuaged, assuaging

1. to make milder or less severe; alleviate; ease; mitigate.

   to assuage one's grief;

   to assuage one's pain.

   Synonyms:

   relieve, lessen, diminish, allay

2. to appease; satisfy; sate.

   to assuage one's hunger.

3. to soothe, calm, or mollify.

   to assuage his fears;

   to assuage her anger.

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assuage British  

/ əˈsweɪdʒ, əˈsweɪsɪv /

verb

1. to soothe, moderate, or relieve (grief, pain, etc)

2. to give relief to (thirst, appetite, etc); satisfy

3. to pacify; calm

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Other Word Forms

• assuagement noun
• assuager noun
• assuasive adjective
• unassuaging adjective

Etymology

Origin of assuage

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English aswagen, from Old French asouagier, from unrecorded Vulgar Latin assuāviāre, equivalent to Latin as- as- + -suāviāre, verbal derivative of Latin suāvis “agreeable to the taste, pleasant” ( suave; akin to sweet )

Example Sentences

The meeting didn’t appear to assuage those concerns.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

The postponement of strikes on Iranian power plants may assuage fears of a more intense and prolonged conflict.

From Barron's • Mar. 23, 2026

But economists and analysts alike looked to assuage those fears, saying the loss of jobs in February is not related to AI.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 6, 2026

Sheinbaum, meanwhile, has steadily increased security cooperation with the U.S., in an effort to assuage Trump and stave off unilateral U.S. action inside Mexico.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 13, 2026

Hina would quietly give my mom this little victory to assuage her concerns.

From "Love, Hate & Other Filters" by Samira Ahmed

Related Words

• allay
• alleviate
• appease
• lessen
• mitigate
• mollify
• pacify
• placate
• quench
• sate
• satisfy
• soften
• temper