Word of the day · 16 September 2026
mitigate
/ˈmɪtɪɡeɪt/
verb
To make something less severe, harmful or painful.
In a sentence
- Cooling centers help mitigate heat stress during a heat wave.
- The apology did little to mitigate the public anger.
- Extra training may mitigate errors on the new system.
In an image
Origin
From Latin mitigare (to soften, make mild), from mitis (soft, gentle).
History
Legal and medical writers kept mitigate for softening a penalty or a symptom. Climate and risk teams now use it for cutting harm: mitigate flood risk, mitigate side effects. The verb does not mean erase. It means make the load lighter while the cause may still exist.
Nearby words
ease · lessen · alleviate
Reduce the damage without pretending the problem is gone.