moderate

[ adjective, noun mod-er-it, mod-rit; verb mod-uh-reyt ]

/ adjective, noun ˈmɒd ər ɪt, ˈmɒd rɪt; verb ˈmɒd əˌreɪt /

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See synonyms for: moderate / moderated / moderating / moderately on Thesaurus.com

adjective

kept or keeping within reasonable or proper limits; not extreme, excessive, or intense: a moderate price.

of medium quantity, extent, or amount: a moderate income.

mediocre or fair: moderate talent.

calm or mild, as of the weather.

of or relating to moderates, as in politics or religion.

noun

a person who is moderate in opinion or opposed to extreme views and actions, especially in politics or religion.

(usually initial capital letter) a member of a political party advocating moderate reform.

verb (used with object), mod·er·at·ed, mod·er·at·ing.

to reduce the excessiveness of; make less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous: to moderate the sharpness of one's words.

to preside over or at (a public forum, meeting, discussion, etc.).

verb (used without object), mod·er·at·ed, mod·er·at·ing.

to become less violent, severe, intense, or rigorous.

to act as moderator; preside.

OTHER WORDS FOR moderate

1 reasonable, temperate, judicious, just, cool, steady, calm. 2 average.

8 ameliorate, pacify, calm, mitigate, soften, mollify, temper, qualify, appease, abate, lessen, diminish.

See synonyms for moderate on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR moderate

5, 6 radical.

See antonyms for moderate on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of moderate

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English moderate (adjective) moderaten (verb), from Latin moderātus (past participle of moderārī “to mitigate, restrain, control”), equivalent to moderā- verb stem (see modest) + -tus past participle suffix

synonym study for moderate

1. Moderate, temperate, judicious, reasonable all stress the avoidance of excess—emotional, physical, intellectual, or otherwise. Moderate implies response or behavior that is by nature not excessive: a moderate drinker, a moderate amount of assistance. Temperate, interchangeable with moderate in some general uses, usually stresses the idea of caution, control, or self-restraint: a surprisingly temperate response to the angry challenge. Judicious emphasizes prudence and the exercise of careful judgment: a judicious balance between freedom and restraint; judicious care to offend neither side. Reasonable suggests the imposition or adoption of limits derived from the application of reason or good sense: a reasonable price; a reasonable amount of damages allotted to each claimant. 8. See allay.

OTHER WORDS FROM moderate

mod·er·ate·ly, adverbmod·er·ate·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use moderate in a sentence

The process of disappointing your own base is brutally hard — just look at the endless fights between moderates and leftists on the Democratic side.
The crisis isn’t too much polarization. It’s too little democracy.|Ezra Klein|November 12, 2020|Vox
Still, the vaccine does cause some mild to moderate symptoms.
New Pfizer vaccine appears 90 percent effective against COVID-19|Erin Garcia de Jesus|November 10, 2020|Science News For Students
Early results from a trial showed the combination reduced virus levels in patients with mild to moderate Covid-19 and cut the rate of hospitalizations and emergency room visits.
Eli Lilly is granted emergency approval for COVID-19 antibody drug by the FDA|kdunn6|November 10, 2020|Fortune
Its current leader, after all, is one of those moderate Republican mayors.
San Diego Is a Big City – Todd Gloria Wants it to Act Like One|Andrew Keatts|November 6, 2020|Voice of San Diego

This situation has loaded the cannons for claims of bias and censorship in how they moderated election-related content.
Why social media can’t keep moderating content in the shadows|Bobbie Johnson|November 6, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Hester is a longtime researcher on evidence-based methods of moderating drinking.
Americans Drink Too Much, But We’re Not All Alcoholics|Gabrielle Glaser|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Nothing I hear from them suggests that the deportation figures are “moderating.”
Hillary Clinton’s Latino Problem|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|June 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
LePage is up for re-election this year and has shown no signs of restraining his rhetoric or moderating his personality.
10 GOP Rebranding Roadblocks|Ben Jacobs|January 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Open access to information beyond that available in the pulpit has already had a moderating effect on the stability of faith.
A Tweeting Pope Raises Questions About Social Media’s Effect on the Church|Lawrence M. Krauss|September 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The Electoral College may be imperfect, but its moderating influence on the American politic should not be laughed off too easily.
Could Abolishing the Electoral College Help Republicans?|Justin Green|January 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The arrogant spending instinct had gained upon the moderating and self-restraining instinct.
Marriage la mode|Mrs. Humphry Ward
Does it not occupy itself with regulating and moderating the passions and desires when the soul is not healthy?
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 3|Plotinos (Plotinus)
Turning out on the morning of the 10th, we were delighted to find the sky clearing and the wind moderating.
The Home of the Blizzard|Douglas Mawson
It is vain to attempt to root it out; what it needs is moderating, regulating, subordinating.
Expositor's Bible: The Gospel of Matthew|John Monro Gibson
Trade unionism seems to have the same moderating effect upon society as a wide diffusion of private property.
A History of Trade Unionism in the United States|Selig Perlman

British Dictionary definitions for moderate

moderate

adjective (ˈmɒdərɪt, ˈmɒdrɪt)

not extreme or excessive; within due or reasonable limitsmoderate demands

not violent; mild or temperate

of average quality or extentmoderate success

noun (ˈmɒdərɪt, ˈmɒdrɪt)

a person who holds moderate views, esp in politics

verb (ˈmɒdəˌreɪt)

to become or cause to become less extreme or violent

(when intr, often foll by over) to preside over a meeting, discussion, etc

British and NZ to act as an external moderator of the overall standards and marks for (some types of educational assessment)

physics to slow down (neutrons), esp by using a moderator

(tr) to monitor (the conversations in an on-line chatroom) for bad language, inappropriate content, etc

Derived forms of moderate

moderately, adverbmoderateness, nounmoderatism, noun

Word Origin for moderate

C14: from Latin moderātus observing moderation, from moderārī to restrain

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

moderate

OTHER WORDS FOR moderate

OPPOSITES FOR moderate

Origin of moderate

synonym study for moderate

OTHER WORDS FROM moderate

Words related to moderate

How to use moderate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for moderate

Derived forms of moderate

Word Origin for moderate