appease
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment; pacify; soothe.
to appease an angry king.
- Antonyms:
- enrage
-
to satisfy, allay, or relieve; assuage.
The fruit appeased his hunger.
-
to yield or concede to the belligerent demands of (a nation, group, person, etc.) in a conciliatory effort, sometimes at the expense of justice or other principles.
- Antonyms:
- defy
verb
-
to calm, pacify, or soothe, esp by acceding to the demands of
-
to satisfy or quell (an appetite or thirst, etc)
Related Words
Appease, conciliate, propitiate imply trying to preserve or obtain peace. To appease is to make anxious overtures and often undue concessions to satisfy the demands of someone with a greed for power, territory, etc.: Chamberlain tried to appease Hitler at Munich. To conciliate is to win an enemy or opponent over by displaying a willingness to be just and fair: When mutual grievances are recognized, conciliation is possible. To propitiate is to admit a fault, and, by trying to make amends, to allay hostile feeling: to propitiate an offended neighbor.
Other Word Forms
- appeasable adjective
- appeasableness noun
- appeasably adverb
- appeasement noun
- appeaser noun
- appeasingly adverb
- nonappeasable adjective
- nonappeasing adjective
- unappeasable adjective
- unappeasably adverb
- unappeased adjective
- unappeasing adjective
- unappeasingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of appease
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English apesen, from Anglo-French apeser, Old French apais(i)er; equivalent to a- 5 + peace
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.
I look between them, hoping that my solution appeases both of them.
From Literature
“My plan was to get here first when I knew you’d still be out so that I’d have time to—to—” I search for an explanation that will appease him.
From Literature
They may see you as public enemy No. 1 whether or not you try to appease and include them.
From MarketWatch
Mansour’s clarifications did little to appease traders, with some claiming they lost money despite betting that Khamenei would be out of power.
As the country heads to the polls next week, it appears politicians have taken note of their anger - promising a raft of changes to appease it.
From BBC
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.
