MEANING
1. To lessen suffering or symptoms without curing the underlying condition.
2. To soften the apparent seriousness of wrongdoing or a defect by explanation or excuse.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- palliate pain
- palliate symptoms
On the page
The medicine palliated the pain but did nothing for the injury.
They tried to palliate his symptoms through the long night.
Nearby words
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- palliate
- Past tense
- palliated
- Past participle
- palliated
- Present participle
- palliating
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- palliate
- Present continuous
- am/is/are palliating
- Present perfect
- have/has palliated
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been palliating
- Past
- palliated
- Past continuous
- was/were palliating
- Past perfect
- had palliated
- Past perfect continuous
- had been palliating
- Future
- will palliate
- Future continuous
- will be palliating
- Future perfect
- will have palliated
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been palliating
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: literary. Forms: palliate; palliates; palliated; palliated; palliating Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: palliates.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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