# sedate

/sɪˈdeɪt/ (US) · /sɪdˈeɪt/ (UK) · CEFR B2 · Verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/sedate
Updated: 2026-05-28

## Definition

to make someone or something less active, excited, or noisy. You use this when you want to calm a person down or slow down a process.

For teachers: to reduce the activity, excitement, or intensity of something. Often used in medical contexts to describe the administration of a drug to calm a patient, or in social contexts to describe the calming of a crowd.

## Examples

- The doctor gave him a pill to sedate him before the procedure.
- The police used loudspeakers to sedate the crowd and prevent any further violence in the square.
- While the initial phase of the project was marked by high energy and rapid prototyping, the management team eventually had to sedate the process to ensure a more rigorous testing phase.

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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.