mollify

verb

mol·​li·​fy ˈmä-lə-ˌfī How to pronounce mollify (audio)
mollified; mollifying

transitive verb

1
: to soothe in temper or disposition : appease
mollified the staff with a raise
2
: to reduce the rigidity of : soften
Shaving cream mollifies the beard.
3
: to reduce in intensity : assuage, temper
Time mollified his anger.
mollification noun

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The Difference Between Mollify, Appease, and Placate

Mollify, like its synonyms pacify, appease, and placate, means "to ease the anger or disturbance of." But mollify is particularly well-suited for referring to an act of soothing hurt feelings or anger; it comes from the Latin mollis, meaning "soft."

Choose the Right Synonym for mollify

pacify, appease, placate, mollify, propitiate, conciliate mean to ease the anger or disturbance of.

pacify suggests a soothing or calming.

pacified by a sincere apology

appease implies quieting insistent demands by making concessions.

appease their territorial ambitions

placate suggests changing resentment or bitterness to goodwill.

a move to placate local opposition

mollify implies soothing hurt feelings or rising anger.

a speech that mollified the demonstrators

propitiate implies averting anger or malevolence especially of a superior being.

propitiated his parents by dressing up

conciliate suggests ending an estrangement by persuasion, concession, or settling of differences.

conciliating the belligerent nations

Examples of mollify in a Sentence

He tried to mollify his critics with an apology. All attempts to mollify the extremists have failed. The landlord fixed the heat, but the tenants still were not mollified.
Recent Examples on the Web Lethal injection has always tried to mollify the public by using scientific terms and products for punishment. Joel B. Zivot, STAT, 26 Feb. 2024 In more recent years, hip-hop has become the go-to means for corporations seeking to rehab their public image and mollify their Black consumer base. Timmhotep Aku, Rolling Stone, 23 Jan. 2024 But that wasn’t enough to mollify critics, who took to social media to express incredulousness and fury. Variety, NBC News, 11 Feb. 2024 Decades of economic, political, and even security engagement from the 1990s on failed to mollify Chinese concerns about Taiwan. Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 However, the couple eventually did return to the U.S. and to mollify them, the production used to send them gifts on set. Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 14 Feb. 2024 Some devs are trying to mollify users by offering pricing tiers that don't pay for themselves, hoping that things balance out through other paying users. Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 1 Feb. 2024 To address the problem and mollify federal government critics, supporters of the act propose steering more conservation money to state and tribal programs. John Flesher, The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Aug. 2023 The court's initial step on ethics, in the spring, also did not mollify critics. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 14 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mollify.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mollifien, from Middle French mollifier, from Late Latin mollificare, from Latin mollis soft; akin to Greek amaldynein to soften, Sanskrit mṛdu soft, and probably to Greek malakos soft, amblys dull, Old English meltan to melt

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of mollify was in the 15th century

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Dictionary Entries Near mollify

Cite this Entry

“Mollify.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mollify. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

mollify

verb
mol·​li·​fy ˈmäl-ə-ˌfī How to pronounce mollify (audio)
mollified; mollifying
1
: to reduce the harshness or violence of
2
: to soothe in temper or disposition : conciliate
mollification noun

More from Merriam-Webster on mollify

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