temper

American  

[tem-per] / ˈtɛm pər /

noun

• tempers
  plural

1. a particular state of mind or feelings.

   Synonyms:

   point of view, perspective, outlook, inclination, attitude, humor, frame of mind, cheer

2. habit of mind, especially with respect to irritability or patience, outbursts of anger, or the like; disposition.

   an even temper.

   Synonyms:

   temperament, spirit, nature, makeup, habit, grain, disposition

3. heat of mind or passion, shown in outbursts of anger, resentment, etc.

   Synonyms:

   petulance, irritation, irritability, crossness, annoyance, resentment

4. calm disposition or state of mind.

   to be out of temper.

   Synonyms:

   composure, equanimity

5. a substance added to something to modify its properties or qualities.

6. Metallurgy.

   1. the degree of hardness and strength imparted to a metal, as by quenching, heat treatment, or cold working.

   2. the percentage of carbon in tool steel.

   3. the operation of tempering.

7. Archaic. a middle course; compromise.

8. Obsolete. the constitution or character of a substance.

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verb (used with object)

• tempers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• tempered,
  past participle,  past
• tempering
  present participle

1. to moderate or mitigate.

   to temper justice with mercy.

2. to soften or tone down.

3. to bring to a proper, suitable, or desirable state by or as by blending or admixture.

4. to moisten, mix, and work up into proper consistency, as clay or mortar.

5. Metallurgy. to impart strength or toughness to (steel or cast iron) by heating and cooling.

6. to produce internal stresses in (glass) by sudden cooling from low red heat; toughen.

7. to tune (a keyboard instrument, as a piano, organ, or harpsichord) so as to make the tones available in different keys or tonalities.

8. to modify (color) by mixing with a medium.

9. Archaic. to combine or blend in due proportions.

10. Archaic. to pacify.

verb (used without object)

• tempers,
  present (3rd person singular)
• tempered,
  past participle,  past
• tempering
  present participle

1. to be or become tempered.

temper British  

/ ˈtɛmpə /

noun

1. a frame of mind; mood or humour

   a good temper

2. a sudden outburst of anger; tantrum

3. a tendency to exhibit uncontrolled anger; irritability

4. a mental condition of moderation and calm (esp in the phrases keep one's temper, lose one's temper, out of temper )

5. the degree of hardness, elasticity, or a similar property of a metal or metal object

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verb

1. to make more temperate, acceptable, or suitable by adding something else; moderate

   he tempered his criticism with kindly sympathy

2. to strengthen or toughen (a metal or metal article) by heat treatment, as by heating and quenching

3. music

   1. to adjust the frequency differences between the notes of a scale on (a keyboard instrument) in order to allow modulation into other keys

   2. to make such an adjustment to the pitches of notes in (a scale)

4. a rare word for adapt

5. an archaic word for mix

temper Idioms  

1. see hold one's temper; lose one's temper.

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Synonym Usage

See disposition. See modify.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• temperability
  noun
• temperer
  noun
• retemper
  verb (used with object)
• nontemperable
  adjective
• temperable
  adjective
• untemperable
  adjective
• untempering
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tempers
  plural

Participles

• tempering
  present
• tempered
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• temper
  simple
• tempers
  simple
• have tempered
  perfect
• has tempered
  perfect
• am tempering
  progressive
• are tempering
  progressive
• is tempering
  progressive
• have been tempering
  perfect progressive
• has been tempering
  perfect progressive

Past

• tempered
  simple
• had tempered
  perfect
• was tempering
  progressive
• were tempering
  progressive
• had been tempering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will temper
  simple
• will have tempered
  perfect
• will be tempering
  progressive
• will have been tempering
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of temper

before 1000; (v.) Middle English tempren, Old English temprian < Latin temperāre to divide or proportion duly, temper; (noun) Middle English: proportion, derivative of the v.

Explanation

Temper can refer to a tendency to become unreasonably angry. If you’re not sure whether you have a temper, ask your friends — but don’t get mad if you dislike what they have to say. Temper has a number of related yet distinct meanings. In addition to describing a tendency to anger, temper can also refer to one’s mood in general; if you use the word in this sense, you might describe someone's temper as "angry" or "mild." Temper can also be used as a verb meaning “to restrain.” If you have a nasty temper, you might try tempering your temper by counting to ten whenever you’re tempted to throw a "temper tantrum," or fit.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

temper tempers tempered tempering

“That said, volatility in user growth due to external factors is likely to temper some excitement on the shares in the near term.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

That was a change from some earlier, infamous Tesla earnings calls when he lost his temper and even berated “boring, bonehead” questions about the meat and potatoes of that company’s business.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

Maybe someday, Roth will temper his empty-calories instincts and make more of a meal out of his twisted ideas.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

In the build-up to the convention, though, the Washington Post reported on some stories from Maine that had been bubbling up on social media about his temper and shouting matches with fellow lawmakers.

From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026

A few times he lost his temper, shouted, and stamped out of the room in disgust.

From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins

The summer break, Roberts has said, is the time when tempers cool.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

He also says Australia's voting system tempers the party's success.

From BBC ● Mar. 25, 2026

This mix tempers volatility more than an all-equity portfolio.

From Barron's ● Mar. 18, 2026

Wilson, who has a personal relationship with Hegseth that likely tempers his typical inflammatory rhetoric, was more delicate.

From Salon ● Mar. 13, 2026

They were burly beasts, with long fur and short tempers.

From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown

Asian stocks mostly rose on Monday following a retreat on Wall Street as investors assessed fresh data that tempered expectations for a US interest rate hike but indicated weakness in the world's top economy.

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

The relief at the numbat's revival is tempered by worry this will make it harder to access the funding and support needed to cement those gains.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

The excitement over the Dodgers getting Tarik Skubal should be tempered by a couple of factors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

Lower inflation expectations have tempered expectations for Fed rate increases, benefiting non-yielding gold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

The celebrations were tempered, however, by the fact that Harrison had lost by the narrowest of margins, fewer than four thousand votes.

From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson

A third reason for tempering our enthusiasm about the data is that U.S. life expectancy remains far below that of other high-income countries.

From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026

The L.A. market “faces several challenges that are tempering hotel performance expectations,” said Ralph Posner, chief communications officer for the American Hotel and Lodging Assn.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026

Xi said at the time that the army had "undergone revolutionary tempering in the fight against corruption".

From BBC ● May 7, 2026

The macro signal isn’t aligned, tempering the bullish case.

From Barron's ● May 7, 2026

He liked traveling so much he wanted to get started early, and early for Charley is the first tempering of darkness with the dawn.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

Related Words

• abate
• allay
• alleviate
• assuage
• cool
• curb
• dilute
• ease
• lessen
• mitigate
• mollify
• restrain
• soften
• soothe
• tone down
• weaken