alleviate
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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unalleviatedlyadverb
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unalleviatingadjective
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unalleviatedadjective
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alleviatornoun
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alleviativeadjective
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unalleviatinglyadverb
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alleviationnoun
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have alleviatedperfect
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has alleviatedperfect 3rd person singular
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have been alleviatingperfect progressive
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has been alleviatingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is alleviatingprogressive 3rd person singular
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are alleviatingprogressive
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am alleviatingprogressive 1st person singular
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alleviatessingular 3rd person
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alleviatingparticiple
Past
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had alleviatedperfect
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had been alleviatingperfect progressive
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was alleviatingprogressive singular
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were alleviatingprogressive plural
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alleviatedparticiple
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alleviatedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of alleviate
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English alleviaten, from Late Latin alleviātus “lightened,” past participle of alleviāre “to lighten, relieve,” from al- al- + levi(s) “light in weight” + -āre, infinitive verb suffix
Explanation
Do all these words make your head ache? If so, take an aspirin to alleviate, or relieve, your pain. The verb, alleviate, stems from the Latin root, levis "light" and is related to modern English words such as elevator and levitate — both words implying a lightening of one's load. Alleviate also has this sense of lightening a burden such as physical pain or emotional duress. You can take medicine to alleviate symptoms or do exercise to alleviate stress. Or if you want a bigger challenge: try alleviating traffic congestion or world hunger.
Vocabulary lists containing alleviate
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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Grade 9, List 2
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Farewell to Manzanar
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Alleviate poverty, make schooling and a paying job worthwhile?
From Washington Post • Aug. 5, 2022
"Reach out to people. Alleviate people by giving them love. You can't reach out physically but you can reach out mentally and in the most humane way possible," he added.
From Fox News • Apr. 4, 2020
In 2002, in what remains to this day the most illustrative case on the issue — Californians Helping to Alleviate Medical Problems, 128 T.C.
From Forbes • Jan. 24, 2015
Alleviate is thus less than relieve; relieve, ordinarily, less than remove.
From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin
Alleviate, Relieve These words differ chiefly in degree.
From Slips of Speech : a Helpful Book for Everyone Who Aspires to Correct the Everyday Errors of Speaking by Bechtel, John Hendricks
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
