What does "moderate" mean?
Moderate: To restrain from excess of any kind; to reduce from a state of violence, intensity, or excess; to keep within bounds; to make temperate; to lessen; to allay; to repress; to temper; to qualify; as, to moderate rage, action, desires, etc.; to moderate heat or wind. By its astringent quality, it moderates the relaxing quality of warm water. Arbuthnot. To moderate stiff minds disposed to strive. Spenser.
Additional senses
- 2.To preside over, direct, or regulate, as a public meeting; as, to moderate a synod.
- 3.To become less violent, severe, rigorous, or intense; as, the wind has moderated.
- 4.To preside as a moderator. Dr. Barlow [was] engaged ... to moderate for him in the divinity disputation. Bp. Barlow's Remains (1693).
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00