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.
RELATED WORDS
mitigate, placate, assuage, repress, soothe, quell, ameliorate, mollify, allay, tame, square, subdue, dulcify, soften, stroke, grease, lull, still, propitiate, compose
Nearby words
- pacifico,
- pacifier,
- pacifism,
- pacifist,
- pacifistic,
- pacing catheter,
- pacini,
- pacinian corpuscle,
- pacino,
- pack
Origin of pacify
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for pacify
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
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
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pacify
late 15c., "appease, allay the anger of (someone)," from Middle French pacifier "make peace," from Latin pacificare "to make peace; pacify," from pacificus (see pacific). Of countries or regions, "to bring to a condition of calm," c.1500, from the start with suggestions of submission and terrorization. Related: Pacified; pacifying.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper