mediate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to settle (disputes, strikes, etc.) as an intermediary between parties; reconcile.
- Synonyms:
- arbitrate
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to bring about (an agreement, accord, truce, peace, etc.) as an intermediary between parties by compromise, reconciliation, removal of misunderstanding, etc.
- Synonyms:
- arbitrate
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to effect (a result) or convey (a message, gift, etc.) by or as if by an intermediary.
verb (used without object)
adjective
verb
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(intr; usually foll by between or in) to intervene (between parties or in a dispute) in order to bring about agreement
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to bring about (an agreement)
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to bring about (an agreement) between parties in a dispute
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to resolve (differences) by mediation
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(intr) to be in a middle or intermediate position
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(tr) to serve as a medium for causing (a result) or transferring (objects, information, etc)
adjective
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occurring as a result of or dependent upon mediation
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a rare word for intermediate
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logic (of an inference) having more than one premise, esp, being syllogistic in form
Usage
What does mediate mean? Mediate means to help to settle a dispute or create agreement when there is conflict between two or more people or groups by acting as an intermediary or go-between for those parties. A person who acts as an intermediary or go-between in this way can be called a mediator. The act or process of mediating is called mediation. Mediation always involves a mediator acting as an impartial third party to guide the communication between the conflicting parties. Sometimes, mediation happens in an informal way. You might help two friends by mediating their argument. But the word is perhaps most commonly used in more specific ways in formal situations, such as when a mediator mediates a labor dispute between a company and its striking employees or when a mediator mediates a divorce for two spouses. When mediation occurs in an official or legal context, such as when it has been ordered by a judge, it is often called arbitration. Arbitration usually involves a decision that the parties are bound by. Mediation is typically less formal and usually involves suggestions for settling differences, as opposed to binding decisions. Example: I know you two have your differences, so I’d like to mediate a meeting to see if you can come to an understanding.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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mediatenessnoun
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mediatornoun
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mediativeadjective
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self-mediatingadjective
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unmediatingadjective
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mediatelyadverb
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mediatoriallyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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mediatesimple
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mediatessimple
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have mediatedperfect
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has mediatedperfect
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am mediatingprogressive
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are mediatingprogressive
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is mediatingprogressive
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have been mediatingperfect progressive
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has been mediatingperfect progressive
Past
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mediatedsimple
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had mediatedperfect
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was mediatingprogressive
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were mediatingprogressive
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had been mediatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mediate
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin mediātus, past participle of mediāre “to be in the middle, intercede”; see medium, -ate 1
Explanation
If your two best friends aren't speaking to each other, you might find yourself trying to mediate a peace accord between them. To mediate is to go from one to another and try to make peace. Mediate derives from the Latin medius "middle," and people who mediate are in the middle, between the parties. Other things that are in the middle can be said to mediate as well. Your mind can mediate between your two conflicting personalities.
Vocabulary lists containing mediate
100 SAT Words Beginning with "M"
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The Blood of Olympus
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"The Diary of a Young Girl," Vocabulary from the diary
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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.
See Examples For:
The US president refers to Munir as his "favourite field marshal", following their acquaintance in the aftermath of conflict with India that Trump helped mediate last year.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
He has since clarified that the US remains ready to mediate "if that opportunity presents itself".
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
If the Constitution treats all of that information as voluntarily exposed merely because third parties mediate it technologically, then the Fourth Amendment contracts dramatically without anyone ever formally rewriting it.
From Slate ● May 20, 2026
"We are now certain that grapes act as a superfood and mediate a nutrigenomic response in humans," said John Pezzuto, Ph.D.,
From Science Daily ● May 18, 2026
In the beginning Mr. Dussel took our soon-forgotten clashes very seriously, but now he’s grown used to them and no longer tries to mediate.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
The hope is to become a "big fish" who mediates between the grunts and those with cash, maybe even entering polite society.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
The Geneva-based body that mediates trade disputes Friday said its Trade Barometer fell to 101.7 in June from 102.3 in January.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
One way to escape this game of chicken is when a third party mediates, offering both sides an off-ramp.
From BBC ● May 1, 2025
As journalist Franklin Foer elaborates in his acclaimed book on Biden’s presidency, The Last Politician, politics for Biden is the “means by which a society mediates its difference of opinion, allowing for peaceful coexistence.”
From Salon ● Feb. 18, 2024
Rightly acquired and used it alleviates and mediates, but gathered and amassed for itself only it is but a mountain of shining ore, valueless and unsatisfying to its possessor.
From Allegories of Life by Adams, J. S., Mrs.
During the fourth decade of warming, they observed that stable portions of soil organic matter, once believed to resist warming mediated decomposition, also began to break down.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Recognizing that the more our lives are mediated with digital tools the harder it becomes to live without them has catalyzed less explicitly political pushes for offline attention as well.
From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026
When so much of our public life is mediated through phone screens, dubious algorithms and national outrage, there is something sincere and restorative about a neighborhood potluck.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Muscat served as the back channel for talks between the United States and Iran in the lead-up to the 2015 nuclear deal and mediated several rounds of talks during Trump's second term.
From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026
Statistically, part of that ultimate effect of history proves to be mediated by the familiar proximate causes of good institutions.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Pakistan, which has been mediating a resolution to the Middle East war, condemned the drone attacks, saying they "pose a grave threat to peace and stability" in the Middle East.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
Aside from the Qatari delegation visiting Iran, Qatar's emir on Friday held a call with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan, which has also been mediating, according to Sharif's office.
From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026
Countries that have been mediating the talks didn’t confirm Trump’s optimism in their formal comments.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Qatar is a full mediating partner, along with Pakistan, in the diplomatic attempt to restart talks.
From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026
By my second year, it was natural for me to spend a typical day mediating between Frederick Douglass’s integration into America and Martin Delany’s escape into nationalism.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
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.
