# assuage

/əˈsweɪdʒ/ (US) · /ɐswˈeɪdʒ/ (UK) · CEFR C2 · Verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/assuage
Updated: 2026-09-29

## Definition

to make an unpleasant or painful feeling less intense. You use this when you try to calm someone's fears or satisfy their hunger.

For teachers: to make an unpleasant feeling less intense; to satisfy an appetite or desire. Often used in formal or literary contexts to describe the mitigation of negative emotional states.

## Examples

- The manager tried to assuage the customer's anger with a refund.
- The government introduced new safety regulations to assuage public fears following the industrial accident.
- The diplomat's carefully worded statement was designed to assuage the concerns of neighboring nations without committing his own country to a specific course of action.

## Synonyms

pacify, appease, placate, gentle, quench, lenify, conciliate, mollify, gruntle, slake

## Usage notes

- The verb is transitive and typically takes abstract nouns like 'guilt', 'fears', 'grief', or 'hunger' as its direct object.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.