Question 1 · Quick check
allay
CEFRC2
/əˈleɪ/
verb
Türkçe translations
Translating…
In plain English
- 01
verb
To make a fear, worry, or problem less strong.
- 02
verb
Extra detailTo alleviate; to abate; to mitigate.
Examples
She tried to allay their fears but only ended up heightening them.
This medicine will allay the pain.
At a glance
Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale
- Senses
- 5
- Parts of speech
- 1
- Citations
- 5
- Synonyms
- 5
Deep Dive
verb
Extra meaningsTo subside, abate, become peaceful.
To make quiet or put at rest; to pacify or appease; to quell; to calm.
To mix (metals); to mix with a baser metal; to alloy; to deteriorate.
More examples
In contextto allay the severity of affliction or the bitterness of adversity
to allay the tumult of the passions
to allay popular excitement
Related
Quick test
Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.
Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.
Nearby
Origin
verb
From Middle English alayen, aleyen, aleggen, from Old English āleċġan (“to put, place, lay down, lay aside, throw down, give up, cease from, abandon; put down, allay, suppress, abolish, conquer, destroy, overcome, refute; lay upon, inflict, impose upon; diminish, take away, refuse, lessen, withhold”), from Proto-Germanic *uzlagjaną (“to lay down”), equivalent to a- + lay. Cognate with German erlegen (“to impose, cause to succumb, kill”), Gothic 𐌿𐍃𐌻𐌰𐌲𐌾𐌰𐌽 (uslagjan, “to lay down”). In Middle English the word was identical to forms of allege and alloy, leading to much overlapping of senses.