moderateadj.n.
/ˈmɒd(ə)rət/, U.S. /ˈmɑd(ə)rət/ A. adj.
1.
a. Of medium or middling quality, size, or extent; average in intensity, difficulty, or degree; fairly large or good; intermediate. Later also depreciative (esp. in very moderate): of limited extent or quality; mediocre, scanty.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > moderateness of quantity, amount, or degree > [adjective]
evenlya1200
methefully?c1225
renable?1305
reasonablea1325
measurablec1330
skillwisea1340
moderatea1398
temperate1398
meetlya1400
measurablyc1450
rationablec1475
competent1535
midway1573
modest1582
sober1619
medious1657
slack1662
meeverly1819
low key1941
the mind > goodness and badness > inferiority or baseness > [adjective] > middling or mediocre
moderatea1398
half-piec1926
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 211v Eueriche herbe and tree nedeþ..moderat water.
?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. O I shal streyne with a moderate compendiosite þe principale or namely leryngz of wisemen.
c1450 J. Lydgate Dietary (Sloane) 75 in Anglia (1918) 42 191 Moderat fode growith to mannys helth.
c1500 (?a1475) Assembly of Gods (1896) 885 Moderat Dyete & Wysdom auenaunt [etc.].
c1540 A. Borde Bk. for to Lerne C iij b Moderate slepe..doth anymat and comforte all the naturall, animall, and spyrytuall, powers of man.
a1547 Earl of Surrey in Nugæ Antiquæ (1804) II. 358 The cheif blisse that in earth to liuing man is lent, Is moderat welth.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) iii. v. 12 There's not so much left to furnish out a moderate Table. View more context for this quotation
1624 H. Wotton Elements Archit. 42 That all the proiected or Iutting Parts (as they are tearmed) be very moderate.
1690 J. Locke Ess. Humane Understanding ii. xvi. 100 And some, through the default of their Memories..are not able all their life-time, to reckon or regularly go over any moderate Series of Numbers.
1705 F. Fuller Medicina Gymnastica Pref. sig. C3v Moderate Exercise..will enrich the Fluids.
1711 Ld. Shaftesbury Characteristicks III. Misc. v. ii. 283 A good Bargain it were, cou'd we get rid of every moderate Performance in this kind [sc. Poetry or Essay].
1748 B. Robins & R. Walter Voy. round World by Anson iii. vi. 350 Pedro Blanco is a rock of a small circumference, but of a moderate height.
1796 J. Morse Amer. Universal Geogr. (new ed.) II. 73 [In Russia] they put a very moderate faggot into them [sc. stoves].
1802 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 8 314 A second case..terminated..in a moderate sweat.
1828 E. B. Pusey Hist. Enq. Rationalist Char. I. i. 38 The rest are very moderate productions.
1889 Sat. Rev. 16 Mar. 326/1 He [sc. the horse Monarque] looks long in the back and has very moderate loins.
1897 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. IV. 162 The skin assumes a moderate icteroid hue.
1914 W. J. Bean Trees & Shrubs Hardy in Brit. Isles II. 118 The Pachysandras..make neat tufts, but are of only moderate decorative value.
1956 A. J. J. Moulam Tryfan & Glyder Fach 85 Ordinary route. About 200 feet. Moderate.
1957 B. L. Ginzton Microwave Measurem. viii. 389 The frequency of the unknown signal can be measured with moderate accuracy by an instrument called the heterodyne frequency meter.
1971 N. Tennent Islands of Scotl. i. 32 Arran rock offers little choice between easy to moderate scrambles and hard, strenuous routes.
1990 Times Educ. Suppl. 1 June a71/1 (advt.) Required,..a tutor for special needs pupils with moderate learning difficulties.
b. Of a physical process, condition, or agency: not intense, violent, rigorous, or severe. Of winds or seas: of medium strength or force. Of a person's voice or other sound: neither excessively loud nor excessively quiet.In Meteorology also applied spec. to winds having a particular force on the Beaufort scale, as: moderate breeze n. one of force 4 on the Beaufort scale (11–16 knots). moderate gale n. spec. a wind of force 7 on the Beaufort scale (28–33 knots).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adjective]
light?c1225
moderatea1398
sober1398
weakc1400
meanly?a1425
treatablec1450
slenderc1475
remiss1550
quiet1560
unpassionatea1600
relaxative1611
the world > matter > gas > air > [adjective] > specific qualities of (the) air > equable
mildOE
attemperedc1430
well-attempereda1460
moderate1590
temperate1698
the world > physical sensation > hearing and noise > voice or vocal sound > quality of voice > [adjective] > neither soft not loud
moderate1863
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 134v Wynd þat is moderat & not contrarye to schipmen.
1578 G. Best True Disc. Passage to Cathaya (1867) 57 Bycause it [sc. the sun] commeth so seldome, and continueth so small a time, when it commeth, it is not to be wayed, but rather the moderate heate of other times is all the yeare to be remembered.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. xii. sig. Aa5v The milde ayre with season moderate Gently attempred.
1598 tr. G. de Rosselli Epulario L j b Make a moderate fire as to a Tarte.
1666 R. Boyle Origine Formes & Qualities ii. vi. 345 The saline Corpuscles are distill'd over in a moderate Fire of Sand.
1704 J. Cuningham in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 24 1649 Grey cloudy Weather, with moderate Gales from NW to W.
1769 E. Raffald Experienced Eng. House-keeper xiii. 275 Bake them in a moderate Oven.
1831 F. Beaufort in R. Fitzroy Narr. Voy. H.M.S. Adventure & Beagle (1839) II. ii. 40 Moderate Breeze..that in which a man-of-war, with all sail set, and clean full, would go in smooth water from..5 to 6 knots.
1863 P. W. Joyce School Managem. 75 The monitors must be trained to speak, when teaching, in a moderate voice.
1883 Harper's Mag. Aug. 449/1 In moderate seas its want of support, owing to a light displacement being bullied by large sails, so deadens the headway as to make the boat plunge and wallow.
1906 G. C. Simpson Beaufort Scale of Wind-force 36 (table) Moderate breeze,..raises dust and loose paper; small branches are moved.
1906 G. C. Simpson Beaufort Scale of Wind-force 36 (table) Moderate gale,..whole trees in motion; inconvenience felt when walking against wind; umbrellas discarded in exposed places.
1964 F. Chichester Lonely Sea & Sky ii. xi. 118 Weather expected fine; fresh to strong south-easterly breeze; seas moderate becoming rough.
1975 A. Deyell My Shetland 54 Doon cam da hael lot, watter an aa on da kitchen flöor wi a clatter at wis nedder moderat nor aisy.
1987 Green Cuisine Feb. 12/2 Place the butter and spring onions in a small saucepan and cook over a moderate heat.
2.
a. Of a person, action, trait, etc.: exhibiting or acting with moderation; characterized by restraint in conduct or expression; temperate.In contexts relating to alcoholic drink: spec. characterized by moderation; (of a person) not teetotal but not indulging to excess.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > restrained or moderate behaviour > [adjective]
methelyeOE
i-meteOE
methefulOE
attempre1297
measurablec1330
temprea1340
temperatec1380
temperantc1384
attemperatec1386
attemperelc1386
chastea1400
mannered1435
measureda1450
moderatea1450
well-measuredc1450
attempered1474
modest1548
sober1552
measurely1570
temperable1619
contemperate1647
submissive1753
managed1770
self-contained1838
inexplosive1867
a1450 (c1412) T. Hoccleve De Regimine Principum (Harl. 4866) (1897) 2436 (MED) Moderat speche engendrith reste.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1872) IV. 309 (MED) A man lyke to a god, happy in batelle and moderate [L. moderatior] in peace.
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. clxxv They must bring with them a mynd neyther ambitious nor couetous, but godly & moderat.
1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iii. ii. 111 O loue be moderate, allay thy extasie. View more context for this quotation
1611 Bible (King James) Ecclus. xxxi. 20 Sound sleepe commeth of moderate eating. View more context for this quotation
?1680 S. Titus Speech 26 Oct. in R. Chandler Hist. & Proc. House of Commons (1742) I. 393 We are advised to be moderate..; but I do not take Moderation to be a prudent Virtue in all Cases... The moderatest and meekest Man that ever was, seeing an Egyption struggling with an Israelite, slew the Egyptian.
1770 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) II. xxxviii. 81 They have lost or renounced the moderate principles of their government.
1776 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xiv. 416 After he had lost the assistance, and disdained the moderate counsels of Diocletian.
1798 M. Wollstonecraft On Poetry 174 Those calm sensations are not sufficiently lively to serve as a relaxation to the voluptuary, or even to the moderate pursuer of artificial pleasures.
1842 W. Morgan in E. S. Abdy tr. R. von Falkenstein Water Cure App. 200 The continued use of such liquors..enlists the moderate man into the ranks of the drunkard.
1887 Poor Nellie (1888) 76 You are such a very moderate man, Octavius, that you might just as well take the pledge as not.
1912 Dict. National Biogr. 1901–11 II. 283/1 While he denounced drunkenness, gambling, and horse-racing, he frankly defended moderate drinking.
1965 M. Spark Mandelbaum Gate i. 5 Why did people have to go to extremes, why couldn't they be moderate?
1994 Sunday Times 6 Mar. (News Review section) iv. 6/7 Though she may be moderate in taste and temper, she appears to be an intellectual powerhouse.
b. Of persons or their opinions: not strongly partisan; not radical or extreme. (Chiefly in context of politics or religion.)
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > absence of prejudice > [adjective]
unpossesseda1586
affectionless1595
respectless1598
unprejudicating1602
spacious1609
unprejudicate1609
unprejudicated1609
undifferencing?1624
unprepossessed1629
imprejudicate1640
unprejudiced1641
unprejudicial1641
unpreoccupated1641
unsuperstitious1652
moderate1654
unforestalled1657
unengaged1659
equipondious1661
uncaptivated1678
unbiased1686
unbigoted1711
Whiggish1715
open-minded1748
progressive1780
liberal1781
prejudiceless1830
broad1832
great-eyed1850
synoptic1852
undogmatic1857
undogmatical1863
superstitionless1879
race-blind1900
personless1932
verlig1968
1654 T. Gataker Disc. Apol. 26 I maintained a good correspondence..with the moderater sort on either side.
a1662 P. Heylyn Cyprianus Anglicus (1668) 4 Some of the more moderate (or rather the lesse violent) Lords..gave out that they intended onely to remove him from his Majesties eare.
1687 King James II in W. M. Hetherington Hist. Church Scotl. (1842) 518 We allow and tolerate the moderate Presbyterians to meet in their private houses and there to hear all such ministers as have or are willing to accept of our Indulgence.
1703 D. Defoe Shortest Way to Peace 25 The moderate Members of the Church of England, call'd Low Church Men.
a1715 Bp. G. Burnet Hist. Own Time (1753) III. iv. 137 He slackened all the laws made against the moderate Presbyterians.
1753 J. Witherspoon Eccl. Characteristics iii. 13 It is a necessary part of the character of a moderate man, never to speak of the Confession of Faith but with a sneer.
1886 Manch. Examiner 16 Jan. 5/4 An Evangelical of moderate views.
1946 R. Capell Simiomata ii. 53 There are the moderate advocates of Demotic, and the advanced who are all for dropping more and more inflections.
1993 Newsweek 6 Sept. 32/3 The PAC and the more moderate African National Congress, led by Nelson Mandela.
1998 Daily Tel. 1 Dec. 10/3 The packing of meetings by republicans is creating a climate in which no Catholic who wanted to express a moderate view would dare to speak up.
c. spec. Now usually in form Moderate. Designating, belonging to, or characteristic of any of various political or ecclesiastical parties regarded as holding moderate views.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > politics > party politics > groups or attitudes right to left > [adjective] > moderate
moderate1702
non-militant1829
soft1844
1702 R. Thoresby Diary (1830) I. 259 For fear the..Hyperconformists should..prevail against the Bishops themselves and the moderate party.
1753 J. Witherspoon Eccl. Characteristics in Wks. (1804) II. 299 The moderate party commonly set up on a pretence of being more learned than their adversaries.
1774 Gentleman & Lady's Weekly Mag. 15 June 261 The moderate party (as they call themselves) seemed to be much broke.
1842 Mem. J. Halley 37 There are two contending principles within the Church of Scotland, the supporters of which are called respectively Evangelical and Moderate.
1848 G. Struthers Rise Relief Ch. 193 The Moderate clergy..were very unpopular.
1875 C. G. McCrie Story Sc. Church 505 In 1763, Dr. Robertson became the avowed leader of the Moderate party.
1924 J. T. Gwynn Indian Politics iii. 18 The Moderate or Co-operating party is to-day so unpopular that it takes some strength of mind to remain a Co-operator.
1973 T. K. Derry Hist. Mod. Norway x. 325 In the summer of 1934 Hjort had failed to put through a scheme for linking the Agrarian Party with the Moderate Liberals.
3. Of prices, charges, etc.: not excessive; reasonable, low.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > monetary value > price > low price or rate > [adjective]
simplea1387
low1437
moderate1531
base1581
moderable1623
1531 T. Elyot Bk. named Gouernour iii. xxi. sig. f2 He was contented to be serued at one meale with thre dysshes, or sixe at the mooste: whiche also were of a moderate price.
1705 Boston News-let. 2 Apr. 2/2 (advt.) This Publick Printed News-Letter..was propounded to be Printed for one year for a tryal..to see if the Income by the Sale thereof at a moderate price would be sufficient encouragement to defray the necessary Charge expended in the procuring and Printing of the same.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 206. ⁋1 There is a perpetual call upon mankind to value and esteem those who set a moderate price on their own merit.
1742 Defoe's Tour Great Brit. (ed. 3) III. 294 John Tuckfield..was pleased to accommodate the Governors with a Plot of Ground near Southernhay, without the City-walls, at a very moderate Price.
1842 W. M. Thackeray Miss Löwe in Misc. Ess. (1885) 313 He would send some excellent Médoc at a moderate price.
1862 E. C. Gaskell Let. 23 July (1966) 927 We stopped all night in a clean hotel... It is not down in Murray, but ought to be for its cleanliness, civility, and moderate charges.
1933 J. Gray Lowrie 61 Ken you, its far better ta enter what you fin' at da Customhoose, fur dir very moaderate.
1971 Bibliotheck 6 57 The New Aldis..at the moderate price of £4.50 and with more than 1600 additional entries..will be especially welcome.
1994 P. Hobbs & M. Algar Free to Travel Gloss. 222 Shoulder season, the period between high and low seasons at a tourist destination. Prices should be moderate at this time.
B. n.
1. A person who holds moderate opinions in politics, religion, or any subject of controversy. Hence (now usually in form Moderate): a member of any of various parties and factions officially or in general known as ‘Moderate’.Apart from quot. 1648, which appears to be an isolated example, the earliest uses in English refer to the French Revolution, the word being first applied to the Girondists, later to the Dantonists and others. In British municipal politics of the late 19th cent. the term was used to designate those opposed to undertakings involving large expenditure of public money, as distinguished from the Progressives.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > politics > party politics > groups or attitudes right to left > [noun] > moderatism > moderate
moderate1648
moderatist1716
non-militant1840
moderantist1877
mod1907
wet1931
1645 (title) The moderate intelligencer: impartially communicating martiall affaires to the kingdome of England.]
1648 (title) The moderate: impartially communicating martial affaires to the kingdome of England.
1794 E. Burke Corr. (1844) IV. 213 I take it for granted he will come to the moderates, and by thus reuniting the party, put himself [etc.].
1798 C. Smith Young Philosopher IV. 393 I will not talk to you about politics because you are among the moderates and quietists.
1803 T. Jefferson Let. 28 Mar. in Writings (1897) VIII. 222 A schism was taking place in Pennsylvania between the moderates and high-flyers.
1831 A. W. Fonblanque Eng. under Seven Admin. (1837) II. 81 The vast majority of society, Whig, Tory, and Moderates, acknowledge the necessity of Parliamentary Reform.
1844 J. Thomson Let. 6 Oct. in R. A. Preston For Friends at Home (1974) 61 They are Baptists and Morrison and I are Essonists as some of the Moderates call us.
1883 Sat. Rev. 21 July 67/2 The Gladstonian Moderate, the ‘Whig’ as he is locally called, has ceased to have a reason for existence in Irish politics.
1894 Times 19 Dec. 6/1 A Progressive headed the poll, followed by six Moderates, at the election of guardians.
1920 H. V. Lovett Hist. Indian Nationalist Movem. iii. 69 The Moderates were pushed out of a hall and assailed with stones and mud.
1924 J. T. Gwynn Indian Politics iii. 18 It used to be..the fashion to decry the Moderates and Co-operators as if they were a party of weak men and time-servers.
1969 Listener 28 Aug. 268/3 ‘Moderates’ (who include men with a very militant record) are at present containing the extremists and hot-heads.
1989 Oxf. Mail 28 June 8/1 It looks as though the moderates will have to pay for the excesses of the intemperates and the fanatics.
2. spec. In the Church of Scotland during the greater part of the 18th cent. and the first half of the 19th cent.: a member of that party which (in opposition to the ‘Evangelical’ party) held liberal views on doctrine and discipline, and opposed the abolition of lay patronage.
ΚΠ
1830 W. Chambers Bk. Scotl. 432 In all the presbyterian church courts, there are two parties, called the high flyers, the evangelicals, or the saints, and the moderates.
1842 Mem. J. Halley 40 One of the facts illustrative of the principles and practice of the Moderates which made a deep impression on Halley's mind.
1854 H. Miller My Schools & Schoolmasters xxii. 472 The younger men were staunch Liberals, but great Moderates,—the elder, sound evangelicals, but decidedly Conservative in their leanings.
1905 ‘S. Tytler’ Daughter of Manse iii. ii. 198 You know that when the non-intrusionists leave the Church to the backsliders and the Moderates, it will be a dead Church.
1959 H. Escott Sc. Congregationalism 47 The ideal virtue of the Moderates was a sanctified commonsense nurtured by general culture, and they were the sedatives to all enthusiasm.
Compounds
moderate-minded adj.
ΚΠ
1649 O. R. O'Neill Propositions sent to Col. Monck 6 This Kingdome had still many moderate-minded men, that lothed their Country-mens barbarity.
1819 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto I cxviii. 62 I'm a moderate-minded bard.
1922 J. Reith Diary 2 Nov. (1975) I. 86 Austen Chamberlain thinks it most unfortunate that..moderate-minded men should not be united in face of the Labour menace.
1981 Ethics 90 412 For the great majority of moderate-minded individuals, both paradigms contain relatively desirable and undesirable features.
moderate-priced adj.
ΚΠ
1811 H. Macneil Bygane Times 68 (note) Wishing to obtain some moderate priced harpsichord for the use of his daughters, he and his wife repaired to a music-shop for that purpose.
1936 N.Y. Woman 23 Sept. 6/2 The New York Woman recognizes the widespread interest of its readers in moderate priced clothes and merchandise.
1982 Amer. Jrnl. Sociol. 88 30 (note) After 1940, there was little construction of moderate to low-priced dwellings in Chicago.
moderate-sized adj.
ΚΠ
1765 Museum Rusticum 3 157 I pass a moderate-sized roller over the field.
1852 H. Martineau in Househ. Words 25 Sept. 32/2 Here we have a moderate-sized apartment.
1992 Gourmet Feb. 40/1 Using moderate-sized Pacific oysters, the kitchen bakes them in their shells.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
moderatev.
/ˈmɒdəreɪt/, U.S. /ˈmɑdəˌreɪt/ 1. † b. transitive. To simplify. Obsolete. rare.
a. transitive. To make less violent, severe, intense, or burdensome; to make moderate. Formerly also: †to reduce the amount of (a fine, charge, financial burden) (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > make less violent or severe [verb (transitive)]
temperc1000
keelc1175
slakea1300
abate?c1335
settle1338
swagea1340
modifyc1385
rebatea1398
bate1398
moder1414
releasea1425
remiss?a1425
moderate1435
alethe?1440
delaya1450
appal1470
addulce1477
mollify1496
mean?a1513
relent1535
qualify1536
temperatea1540
aplake1578
slack1589
relaxate1598
milden1603
mitigate1611
relax1612
alleniate1615
allay1628
alloy1634
castigate1653
smoothen1655
tendera1656
mitify1656
meeken1662
remitigate1671
obviscate1684
slacken1685
chastise1704
dulcify1744
absorb1791
demulceate1817
chasten1856
modulate1974
mediate1987
society > trade and finance > monetary value > price > discount > deduct as discount [verb (transitive)]
allow1396
rebate1425
defalk1460
moderate1541
qualify1548
disaccount1640
off-reckon1721
to sconce offa1777
to throw off1821
1435 in J. F. South & D. Power Memorials Craft of Surg. (1886) App. 307 (MED) How peines schulen be moderat & bi whom.
c1440 S. Scrope tr. C. de Pisan Epist. of Othea (St. John's Cambr.) (1970) 9 Temperaunce moderatith vices and perfitith vertues.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1874) V. 31 (MED) Marcus Antonius..moderate [a1387 J. Trevisa tr. tempered; L. temperavit] grevous lawes and constitutions with other of gretter moderacion.
1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xx. 64 The maystres..dyd perceyue..that her Indygnacion..was moderat in her herte.
1526 Pylgrimage of Perfection (de Worde) f. 51 These outrageous mocyons be moderate & rectifyed by the cardinall vertue temperaunce.
1541 Act 33 Hen. VIII c. 22 The saide maister..shall haue..auctoritie to moderate such recognisances as be..forfaited.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. ii. sig. O5 With equall measure she did moderate The strong extremities of their outrage.
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies ii. xiii. 111 The coolenesse of the night then is not sufficient to moderate and to correct the violent heate of the Sunne.
1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida iv. v. 5 The greife is fine, full, perfect that I taste... How can I moderate it? View more context for this quotation
1632 J. Pory Let. 20 Sept. in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1827) 2nd Ser. III. 272 His Grace by his dyet hath so moderated his gout, as it is [etc.].
1656 in Early Rec. Town of Providence (Rhode Island) (1893) II. 92 Ordered that ye Attournies fee is moderated from 6:s 8d to 3:s 4d.
1698 tr. C. de Acuña Relation Great River Amazons xix. 72 in Voy. & Discov. S.-Amer. i It must be said that the highest degree of Heat,..however violent it be in it self, it is every where moderated by the gentle Winds, which blow every day.
1731 J. Arbuthnot Ess. Nature Aliments v. 65 By its astringent Quality it [sc. Tea] moderates the relaxing Quality of warm Water.
1732 T. Lediard tr. J. Terrasson Life Sethos II. ix. 308 I..advise you to moderate your demands.
1765 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. I. i. viii. 319 All the hopes we can entertain of ever discharging or moderating our incumbrances.
1828 N. Hawthorne Fanshawe vii. 92 Edward had sufficient compassion for Doctor Melmoth..to moderate his pace to one attainable by the former.
1885 Manch. Examiner 29 June 5/1 Mr. Balfour must moderate at once any hope he derives from the supposition.
1903 G. Matheson Representative Men of Bible 2nd Ser. 36 Lot should have remembered this, and should have moderated his desires.
1958 Spectator 19 Sept. 379/1 The shot I'm going to give you..ought to moderate the symptoms.
1988 S. Afr. Panorama Apr. 36/1 This sulphur makes the remaining calcium more freely available so that it can moderate mud acidity.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > intelligibility > clearness, lucidity > simplifying, popularization > simplify, popularize [verb (transitive)]
explainc1425
moderate1557
facilitate1605
to bring down1719–20
simplify1750
familiarize1752
popularize1799
1557 Bible (Whittingham) N.T. To Rdr. **iij I haue so moderat them [sc. the arguments of Scriptures] with playnenes and breuitie, that the verie ignorant may easely vnderstande them.
c. intransitive. To become less violent, intense, or severe; to abate, soften, lessen.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > become less violent or severe [verb (intransitive)]
allayc1275
softc1300
assuage1330
swagec1330
slakea1352
stanchc1420
overslakec1425
appeasec1440
to swage ofc1440
to sit downa1555
soften1565
slack1580
mitigate1633
moderate1737
gentle1912
1737 Let. 20 Aug. in London Evening Post 23 Aug. 1/2 At Eleven I hoisted out my Pinnace to try to save something if the Weather moderated.
1746 T. Walker Diary (1889) 128 Ye rest of the week cold whilst ye Saturday and then ye weather moderated.
1790 W. Bligh Narr. Mutiny on Bounty 18 Eefow agreed to accompany me thither, if I would wait till the weather moderated.
1819 Baron de Bonstetten in Lady Morgan Passages from Autobiogr. (1859) 310 As the heavens have moderated, I propose..to pay you a visit.
1865 D. Livingstone & C. Livingstone Narr. Exped. Zambesi xxviii. 580 We accepted his hospitality after the weather had moderated.
1897 J. Chalmers in Life (1902) xi. 443 Fortunately the weather moderated.
1904 J. London Sea-wolf xviii. 174 We must have been well in the path of the trans-Pacific steamships when the typhoon moderated.
1971 A. MacLean Bear Island (1972) v. 85 I had the vague impression that the seas were moderating slightly.
1991 Financial Times 20 Mar. 18/1 Inflation is already moderating in those countries which are in recession.
2. † a. transitive. To adjust, arrange, adapt; to modify; to adjust in proportion or quantity. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > change > change [verb (transitive)] > modify
moder1414
moderate1477
modify1759
transmodifya1774
retrofit1949
mod1958
the world > relative properties > quantity > moderateness of quantity, amount, or degree > moderate [verb (transitive)]
moderate1477
the world > relative properties > order > agreement, harmony, or congruity > adaptation or adjustment > adapt or adjust [verb (transitive)] > make proportionate (to) > adjust the proportions of
proportionc1384
moder1414
proportioningc1450
moderate1477
1477 Earl Rivers tr. Dictes or Sayengis Philosophhres (Caxton) (1877) lf. 18 He moderated so his mete and his drinke that he was at noo tyme fatter nor leener than other.
?1530 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry (rev. ed.) f. xxii And he that hath but a fewe shepe moderate this medicyne accordyng.
c1570 Schort Somme 1st Bk. Discipline §6 The ministeris stipend sould be moderated that neither [etc.].
1630 tr. G. Botero Relations Famous Kingdomes World (rev. ed.) 243 Not only his orders and decrees are broken and moderated by the Councell, but also sometimes rejected and contemned.
b. transitive. To exercise a controlling influence over; to regulate, restrain, control, rule. Occasionally reflexive. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > control > [verb (transitive)]
wieldeOE
redeOE
temperc1000
wisc1000
yemec1000
aweldc1175
guy13..
rule1340
attemperc1374
stightlea1375
justifya1393
governa1400
moder1414
control1495
moderate1534
rein1557
manage1560
sway1587
to bear (a rein) upon1603
bridle1615
ephorize1647
puppet1840
coact1855
boss1856
run1869
swing1873
1534 T. More Treat. Passion in Wks. 1311/1 This coulde none do but he, that..was able..to moderate and measure theyr pacys hym selfe, in suche wyse as them selfe wyste not why.
a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 70 By hys royal powar..he may moderat al thyng accordyng to hys plesure & wyl.
1555 R. Eden tr. S. von Herberstein Rerum moscouiticarum commentarii in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 304v A collar or rayne wherwith he moderateth the course of the hartes.
1612 J. Brinsley Ludus Lit. xx. 238 The Interlineall translation may be a worthy helpe for a man..who can so moderate his eye as to keepe it fixed vpon either Greeke or Latine alone.
1615 H. Crooke Μικροκοσμογραϕια 274 The woman was ordayned..to gouerne and moderate the house at home.
1638 R. Baker tr. J. L. G. de Balzac New Epist. II. 209 Yet moderate your selfe a little at first: and be reserved in a strange Country.
1641 Mass. Body of Liberties 95 in Col. Laws Mass. (1889) 59 Provided that the whole action be guided and moderated by the Elders of the Church where the Assemblie is helde.
1673 Sir L. Jenkins Let. to Earl of Arlington in W. Wynne Life (1724) I. 128 The two Bishops have moderated themselves as much as can be desired.
1744 E. Young Complaint: Night the Seventh 27 But These..When Reason moderates the Rein aright, Shall reascend.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall II. xvii. 33 Whatever could interest the public prosperity, was moderated by the authority of the Prætorian præfects.
1808 J. Barclay Muscular Motions 324 On what grounds are we to imagine that these two muscles shall..moderate one another with accuracy and precision?
1839 W. H. Ainsworth Jack Sheppard III. iii. i. 120 I intreat you to moderate yourself.
1997 Internet World Jan. 58/2 Popular newsgroups that are not moderated are being smothered by foolish spamming.
3.
a. transitive. To preside over (a deliberative body) or at (a debate, discussion, etc.).
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > deliberative, legislative, or administrative assembly > chair (an assembly) [verb (transitive)]
moderate1577
chairman1888
chair1921
1577 M. Hanmer tr. Bp. Eusebius in Aunc. Eccl. Hist. v. ix. 85 There moderated there, at that tyme, the schole of the faythfull, a famous learned man, called Pantænus.
1593 T. Bilson Perpetual Govt. Christes Church xiv. 291 The Churches of Christ before that time were guided by certaine chiefe Pastours, that moderated as well the Presbyters as the rest of the flocke.
c1630 W. Scot Apol. Narration Kirk of Scotl. (1846) 17 The General assemblies were not moderated by Superintendents.
1638 in Acts Gen. Assembly Church of Scotl. (1843) 26 No minister moderating his session shall usurpe a negative voice over the members of his session.
1708 S. Sewall Diary 4 Feb. (1973) I. 587 He expounded the first of Matthew yesterday; Moderated the Bachelours Dispute to day.
1809 E. A. Kendall Trav. Northern Parts U.S. I. vii. 68 The governor or some one chosen to moderate the court.
1968 N.Y. Times 26 June 1/5 Being shown live at the time was a panel discussion on the ‘underground press’ moderated by Steven V. Roberts, a reporter for The New York Times.
1975 Listener 9 Jan. 39/1 A meeting whose potential participants promised to be too numerous for any of the available halls... There were two ‘teams’ moderated by the chaplain.
1994 M.E.A.T. Sept. 3/3 The panel, moderated by myself, will feature a who's who of some of Canada and the U.S.'s major industry dudes.
b. intransitive. To act as a moderator; to preside.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > rule or government > ruler or governor > deliberative, legislative, or administrative assembly > of an assembly: hold a session [verb (intransitive)] > preside
moderate1581
preside1581
1581 Confer. (1584) iii. O j b Any learned man present might moderate.
1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre i. iii. 6 in Wks. II A question of Predestination..put to 'hem by the Matron, your Spouse; who moderates with a cup of wine, euer and anone, and a Sentence out of Knoxe between.
1635 E. Pagitt Christianographie 21 Stachis was the first Bishop of Bizantium..who hath had a continued Succession to the Patriarch now moderating.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 37 In the Nationall and Provinciall [Synods] sometimes Kings moderated alone, sometimes the Archbishop alone.
1707 J. Chamberlayne Angliæ Notitia (ed. 22) iii. xii. 468 The Regius Professors of Divinity, Law, and Physick, are obliged to moderate at every Doctors and Batchellors Act, in their several Faculties.
1766 T. Clap Ann. Yale-Coll. 15 Mr. Andrew moderated at the Commencements.
1778 E. Stiles Lit. Diary (1901) II. 311 The first Commencements were private. Rector Pierson moderated and gave Degrees till his Death.
1795 Hutchinson's Hist. Massachusetts (ed. 3) I. 161 (note) Mr. Mather..moderated at the masters disputations, and conferred the degrees at the commencement in 1681.
1803 Gradus ad Cantabrigiam 89 To Moderate, to perform the office of Moderator in the schools.
1995 Re: Could I moderate this Newsgroup? in misc.invest (Usenet newsgroup) 17 Jan. May I suggest that less emphasis be placed on the what should be included/excluded question and more on how long should moderators be given a chance to moderate?
2001 D. K. McKim Westm. Handbk. Reformed Theol. 174/1 Decision making in presbyterian polity is always corporate... The most fundamental court of the church is the session. It governs the local church, is moderated by the pastor, and is comprised of elders elected by the congregation.
c. transitive. Originally Scottish. In the Presbyterian Churches: to preside over (a meeting at which a call or formal invitation to a minister-elect is signed by members of the congregation). Also intransitive: to institute or attend such a meeting; esp. in to moderate in a call.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > church government > member of the clergy > clerical superior > various Christian superiors > [verb (transitive)] > act as moderator
moderate1748
1693 in Trans. Hawick Archaeol. Soc. (1909) 14 That a minister might be sent to Wiltoune to moderate a call for one to be minister there.
1712 in Chrons. Atholl & Tullibardine Families (1908) II. 142 He, taking his advantage, did press the presbitery to moderat a Call.
1745 Session Bk. Glasserton MS 17 June A petition..for a committee..to meet here..to moderate in a call for one to be minister in this parish.
1748 Whitehall Evening-post 7–9 June A Call was moderated for the Rev. John Edmonston, Minister at Cadross.
1816 W. Scott Old Mortality ii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 47 Others were moderating a harmonious call, as they somewhat improperly termed it, to new officers.
1848 G. Struthers Hist. Relief Ch. ii. 201 A call was moderated... The people had set their affections upon Mr. William Adam... For him they moderated a kind of irregular call among themselves.
1869 A. Macdonald Story Disputed Settlem. (1877) 69 I must go over and see him one of these days, before his call is moderated in.
1898 N. R. Johnston Looking back from Sunset Land 150 He had moderated in a unanimous call for me in Topsham congregation.
1903 Eng. Dial. Dict. IV. 141/1 It is the Presbytery that moderates in a ‘call’ from the congregation to the person elected.
1975 Minutes Gen. Assembly United Presbyterian Church U.S.A. i. 197 I, A. B., having moderated the congregational meeting which extended a call to——for——ministerial services, do certify that the call has been made in all respects according to the rules laid down in the Form of Government.
4. † b. transitive. To decide (a question) as an arbitrator; to settle (a question, dispute, etc.) by bringing about a compromise. Obsolete.
a. intransitive. To act as mediator or arbitrator. Also: to take a mediating view.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > dissent > absence of dissension or peace > bringing about concord or peace > become at peace with each other [verb (intransitive)] > mediate
stightlec1440
stickle1530
moderate1597
mediate1616
to step in1657
interpose1710
mediatize1885
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > compromise > [verb (intransitive)]
to give and take1519
compoundc1547
to meet halfway1638
compromise1656
palliate1672
moderate1713
to split the difference1713
1597 F. Bacon Ess. f. 2v The honourablest part of talke, is to giue the occasion, and againe to moderate & passe to somewhat else.
1612 J. Brinsley Ludus Lit. xiii. 184 When one taketh the Affirmatiue part, another the Negatiue, & it may be a third moderateth or determineth betweene both.
1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 160 Elgazzuli..moderated twixt the Cadies and his owne Reformatists.
1678 S. Butler Hudibras: Third Pt. iii. ii. 120 Yet when his Profit moderated, The fury of his Heat abated.
1708 J. Swift Sentiments Church of Eng.-man i, in Misc. (1711) 98 Endeavoring to moderate between the Rival Powers.
1713 J. Addison in Guardian 31 July 2/1 There were however a few select Judges who moderated between both these Extremes.
1756 Connoisseur No. 130. ⁋1 I shall not pretend to moderate in family disputes of so important a nature.
1852 C. Dickens Bleak House (1853) vii. 63 They were not well suited to each other in age or character, and they had no children to moderate between them.
1891 New Englander (New Haven, Connecticut) Dec. 511 It is for the interest of the best men in both parties that there should be a neutral body, not large enough to form a party by itself..and yet large enough to moderate between both.
1912 H. M. Gwatkin Early Church Hist. to A.D. 313 xvi. 85 The confessors rather inclined to leniency, and the bishops generally moderated between them and the zealots.
1989 M. Waseem Polit. & State in Pakistan i. 84 He emerged as a grand integrator of disparate causes and moderated between contending forces, both political and ideological.
2004 P. Franks & T. Blomley in T. O. McShane & M. P. Wells Getting Biodiversity Projects to Work ii. v. 89 A ‘neutral broker’ helping to moderate between local community demands for greater benefit sharing and park management interests for biodiversity conservation.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > settlement of dispute, arbitration > settle, arbitrate [verb (transitive)]
redeOE
to-dealc1275
deraignc1330
determinec1380
award1393
decidec1400
decise?a1425
decernc1425
discernc1425
arbitrea1513
deema1513
moder1534
resolve1586
divide1596
arbitrate1597
fit1600
moderate1602
umpire1609
sopite1628
appointa1631
determinate1647
issue1650
settle1651
to cut the melon1911
society > society and the community > dissent > absence of dissension or peace > bringing about concord or peace > bring to peace (strife or discord) [verb (transitive)] > settle (a dispute) > settle by arbitration
moder1534
day1580
arbitrate1597
moderate1602
umpire1611
1602 R. Carew Surv. Cornwall i. f. 26v It passeth mine abilitie to moderate the question.
1603 C. Heydon Def. Iudiciall Astrol. xii. 276 I will require no other arbitrators, to moderate the controuersie beetwene vs.
1726 G. Leoni tr. L. B. Alberti Architecture I. 23 b Cato moderates the matter thus.
1744 W. Warburton Remarks Occas. Refl. 154 But St. Paul himself has long ago moderated this Question for us, and declared for the negative.
c. transitive. Education. To review (examination papers, grades, etc.) in order to ensure overall consistency of marking. Cf. moderator n. 6c.
ΚΠ
1958 Incentives, External Exam. (Cheshire Educ. Comm.) ii. 7 The scripts are..submitted to the Principal of the College and his staff, who ‘moderate’ them, i.e. examine a sample to ensure that the standard of marking in each school is consistent with the appropriate standard demanded by such institutions.
1976 Incorporated Linguist Spring (recto rear cover) The fees are £20 for each language moderated at each session.
1990 Times Educ. Suppl. 7 Dec. 21/2 The truth is that BTEC courses are poorly designed, poorly taught, poorly moderated.., and held in almost universal contempt.
5. transitive. Nuclear Physics. To slow down (a neutron); to provide (a nuclear reactor) with a moderator.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > nuclear fission > nuclear fuel > enrich (reactor or fuel) [verb (transitive)] > employ or provide moderator
moderate1945
1945 H. D. Smyth Gen. Acct. Devel. Atomic Energy Mil. Purposes viii. 89 It would take two years to produce enough heavy water to ‘moderate’ a fair-sized pile for plutonium production.
1956 H. Seligman in A. Pryce-Jones New Outl. Mod. Knowl. 158 There are very few substances which can be used for this slowing-down process... These substances are called moderators, as they are moderating the neutrons.
1973 Nature 2 Feb. 317/1 In the reactors cooled and moderated by water, the reactor vessel must also be at this pressure.
1990 Sci. Amer. Apr. 59/2 In heavy-water reactors the core is cooled and moderated by ‘heavy’ water.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2002; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.a1398
v.1435- marblefish
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