Dictionary of troublesome word. Bill Bryson. 2013.
militate / mitigate — Militate means to influence toward or against a change : The banality of Rhoda Book s stories militated against their becoming popular. Mitigate means to lessen, make easier, or bearable : A cold compress on your leg will mitigate the… … Confused words
militate / mitigate — Militate means to influence toward or against a change : The banality of Rhoda Book s stories militated against their becoming popular. Mitigate means to lessen, make easier, or bearable : A cold compress on your leg will mitigate the… … Confused words
militate, mitigate — Often confused. To militate is to operate against or, much more rarely, for something: The news of the scandal militated against his election prospects. To mitigate means to assuage, soften, make more endurable: His apology mitigated the… … Dictionary of troublesome word
militate — militate, mitigate The two words are sometimes confused (usually mitigate is used for militate) because both meanings are connected with having a reducing effect and their forms and rhythm are close. Mitigate is transitive (i.e. it takes an… … Modern English usage
mitigate — militate, mitigate The two words are sometimes confused (usually mitigate is used for militate) because both meanings are connected with having a reducing effect and their forms and rhythm are close. Mitigate is transitive (i.e. it takes an… … Modern English usage
militate — ► VERB (militate against) ▪ be a powerful or conclusive factor in preventing. USAGE On the confusion between militate and mitigate, see the note at MITIGATE(Cf. ↑mitigation). ORIGIN Latin militare wage war , from miles soldier … English terms dictionary
mitigate — ► VERB 1) make less severe, serious, or painful. 2) (mitigating) (of a fact or circumstance) lessening the gravity or culpability of an action. DERIVATIVES mitigation noun. USAGE The words mitigate and militate are often confused … English terms dictionary
militate — , mitigate Often confused. To militate is to operate against or, much more rarely, for something: The news of the scandal militated against his election promises. To mitigate means to assuage, soften, make more endurable: His apology mitigated… … Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors
mitigate — [mit′ə gāt΄] vt., vi. mitigated, mitigating [ME mitigaten < L mitigatus, pp. of mitigare, to make mild, soft, or tender < mitis, soft (see MIGNON) + agere, to drive: see ACT1] 1. to make or become milder, less severe, less rigorous, or less … English World dictionary
mitigate — , militate The first means to soften or make more endurable; the second to act against … Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors
