attenuated

[uh-ten-yoo-ey-tid]

adjective

1. weakened.

   My father had a somewhat attenuated relationship with his own family, as his childhood was quite traumatic.

2. thin; slender or fine.

   Images of the conjoined twins’ brains reveal an attenuated line stretching between the two organs, called a thalamic bridge.

3. Bacteriology, Immunology.,  (of a strain of disease-causing virus or bacterium) rendered less virulent.

   The attenuated poliovirus in the Sabin vaccine replicates very efficiently in the gut, but less so in the nervous system.

4. Electronics.,  (of an electronic signal) reduced in amplitude.

   Accuracy decreases in the case of reflected or attenuated signals—for example, inside buildings.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of attenuate.

Other Word Forms

• subattenuated adjective
• unattenuated adjective
• unattenuatedly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of attenuated¹

attenuate ( def. ) + -ed ²

Example Sentences

And then Michael is such a craftsman that every part of everything is studied and controlled and carefully attenuated.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The measles virus is attenuated in the MMR vaccine, meaning that it has been altered to produce the appropriate immune response without triggering the disease itself.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Over a professional career attenuated by injuries, he earned a Most Valuable Player Award and championship titles with the Portland Trail Blazers and the Boston Celtics.

Read more on New York Times

The anti-abortion movement’s victory was really attenuated by this ballot measure, and they are now gearing up for a tough campaign.

Read more on New York Times

Ms. Freund, who wrote a recent paper on the subject, said the two countries’ trade relationship was “definitely being attenuated, but not as much as the official statistics suggest.”

Read more on New York Times

Related Words

• extraordinary 
• limited 
• occasional 
• scarce 
• singular 
• strange 
• subtle 
• uncommon 
• unique 
• unlikely 
• unthinkable 
• unusual