mild
[mahyld]
- amiably gentle or temperate in feeling or behavior toward others.
- characterized by or showing such gentleness, as manners or speech: a mild voice.
- not cold, severe, or extreme, as air or weather: mild breezes.
- not sharp, pungent, or strong: a mild flavor.
- not acute or serious, as disease: a mild case of flu.
- gentle or moderate in force or effect: mild penalties.
- soft; pleasant: mild sunshine.
- moderate in intensity, degree, or character: mild regret.
- British Dialect. comparatively soft and easily worked, as soil, wood, or stone.
- Obsolete. kind or gracious.
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- British. beer that has a blander taste than bitter.
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Origin of mild
before 900; Middle English, Old English milde; cognate with German mild; akin to Greek malthakós soft
Synonyms
See more synonyms for mild on Thesaurus.comAntonyms
1. forceful. 3. severe. 6. harsh.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for milder
Contemporary Examples
Ironically the milder temperatures of approx 32f meant wet conditions for skiing described as ‘miserable’.
VIDEO Prince Harry Arrives in Antartica But Conditions May Yet Hamper TeamsTom Sykes
November 25, 2013
This kind of whining was at the milder end of the loony spectrum.
Cameron said he did not know that Coulson had received only a milder vetting until six months before News of the World closed.
How Close Is Prime Minister David Cameron to Former Murdoch Deputy Rebekah Brooks?Mike Giglio
March 14, 2012
Historical Examples
Nor did the service of praise which preceded the election induce a milder spirit.
Quaint CourtshipsVarious
I am not well, and I am quite sure that I need several years of a milder climate.
Hetty's Strange HistoryAnonymous
The birds had disappeared, seeking a milder climate in the south.
Yet, my friends, I have given you only the milder phase of this evil.
The Wedding RingT. De Witt Talmage
Parasynanche is a synonymous term, but refers to a milder synanche.
Old-Time Makers of MedicineJames J. Walsh
mild
- (of a taste, sensation, etc) not powerful or strong; blanda mild curry
- gentle or temperate in character, climate, behaviour, etc
- not extreme; moderatea mild rebuke
- feeble; unassertive
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- British draught beer, of darker colour than bitter and flavoured with fewer hops
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Word Origin
Old English milde; compare Old Saxon mildi, Old Norse mildr
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for milder
mild
adj.
Old English milde "gentle, merciful," from Proto-Germanic *milthjaz- (cf. Old Norse mildr, Old Saxon mildi, Old Frisian milde, Middle Dutch milde, Dutch mild, Old High German milti, German milde "mild," Gothic mildiþa "kindness"), from PIE *meldh-, from root *mel- "soft," with derivatives referring to soft or softened materials (cf. Greek malthon "weakling," myle "mill;" Latin molere "to grind;" Old Irish meldach "tender;" Sanskrit mrdh "to neglect," also "to be moist"). Originally of persons and powers; of the weather from c.1400, of disease from 1744. Also in Old English as an adverb, "mercifully, graciously."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper