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mollify

[mol-uh-fahy]
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verb (used with object), mol·li·fied, mol·li·fy·ing.

to soften in feeling or temper, as a person; pacify; appease.
to mitigate or reduce; soften: to mollify one's demands.

Origin of mollify

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French mollifier < Late Latin mollificāre, equivalent to Latin molli(s) soft + -ficāre -fy
Related formsmol·li·fi·ca·tion, nounmol·li·fi·er, nounmol·li·fy·ing·ly, adverbmol·li·fi·a·ble, adjectivere·mol·li·fy, verb (used with object), re·mol·li·fied, re·mol·li·fy·ing.un·mol·li·fi·a·ble, adjectiveun·mol·li·fied, adjectiveun·mol·li·fy·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for mollification

reprieve, help, alleviation, assistance, comfort, satisfaction, respite, maintenance, support, happiness, moderation, conciliation, easing, balm, rest, sustenance, abatement, cure, deliverance, appeasement

Examples from the Web for mollification

Historical Examples of mollification

British Dictionary definitions for mollification

mollify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

to pacify; soothe
to lessen the harshness or severity of
Derived Formsmollifiable, adjectivemollification, nounmollifier, noun

Word Origin for mollify

C15: from Old French mollifier, via Late Latin, from Latin mollis soft + facere to make
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 mollification
n.

late 14c., from Old French mollificacion (Modern French mollification), from Medieval Latin mollificationem (nominative mollificatio), noun of action from past participle stem of mollificare (see mollify).

mollify

v.

late 14c., "to soften (a substance)," from Old French mollifier or directly from Late Latin mollificare "make soft, mollify" from mollificus "softening," from Latin mollis "soft" (see melt (v.)) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Transferred sense of "soften in temper, appease, pacify" is recorded from early 15c. Related: Mollified; mollifying.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper