pacify

[ pas-uh-fahy ]
/ ˈpæs əˌfaɪ /

verb (used with object), pac·i·fied, pac·i·fy·ing.

to bring or restore to a state of peace or tranquillity; quiet; calm: to pacify an angry man.
to appease: to pacify one's appetite.
to reduce to a state of submission, especially by military force; subdue.

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Origin of pacify

1425–75; late Middle English < Latin pācificāre to make peace. See pacific, -fy

SYNONYMS FOR pacify

2 soothe, mollify, assuage.

ANTONYMS FOR pacify

2 anger, enrage.

OTHER WORDS FROM pacify

Words nearby pacify

pacifico, pacifier, pacifism, pacifist, pacifistic, pacify, pacing catheter, pacini, pacinian corpuscle, pacino, pack
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to pacified

mitigate, placate, assuage, repress, soothe, quell, ameliorate, mollify, allay, tame, square, subdue, dulcify, soften, stroke, grease, lull, still, propitiate, compose

Example sentences from the Web for pacified

British Dictionary definitions for pacified

pacify
/ (ˈpæsɪˌfaɪ) /

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

to calm the anger or agitation of; mollify
to restore to peace or order, esp by the threat or use of force

Derived forms of pacify

pacifiable, adjective

Word Origin for pacify

C15: from Old French pacifier; see pacific
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