allay

[ uh-ley ]

verb (used with object)

, al·layed, al·lay·ing.

1. to put (fear, doubt, suspicion, anger, etc.) to rest; calm; quiet.

   Synonyms: assuage, soften

   Antonyms: excite

2. to lessen or relieve; mitigate; alleviate:

   to allay pain.

   Synonyms: ease, temper, mollify, lighten

allay

/ əˈleɪ /

verb

1. to relieve (pain, grief, etc) or be relieved
2. tr to reduce (fear, anger, etc)

Other Words From

• al·layer noun
• unal·layed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of allay¹

before 1000; Middle English aleyen, Old English ālecgan to put down, allay ( ā- a- ³ + lecgan to lay ¹ ); spelling -ll- shows influence of the now obsolete allege (< Anglo-French, Old French aleg ( i ) er; allege ) to alleviate, allay

Word History and Origins

Origin of allay¹

Old English ālecgan to put down, from lecgan to lay ¹

Synonym Study

Allay, moderate, soothe mean to reduce excitement or emotion. To allay is to lay to rest or lull to a sense of security, possibly by making the emotion seem unjustified: to allay suspicion, anxiety, fears. To moderate is to tone down any excess and thus to restore calm: to moderate the expression of one's grief. To soothe is to exert a pacifying or tranquilizing influence: to soothe a terrified child.

Example Sentences

But Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty said he was confident the "full detail" of the arrangement would allay concerns.

From BBC

Jack O’Brien, the show’s director, tried to allay her concerns by framing the production as a public stress reliever.

From Los Angeles Times

The big players in the global data centre industry are trying to allay people’s concerns.

From BBC

Those locations, primarily in Southern California, are among hundreds of stores, distribution centers and plants that the companies have proposed selling to another company, C&S Wholesale Grocers, in an effort to allay regulators’ concerns about the mega-merger.

From Los Angeles Times

There may be limited opportunities for Harris to allay the cultural concerns of manosphere members—I can’t see her promising mandatory companionship for incels, asserting that men are naturally better leaders, or getting Walz interested in looksmaxxing—but their biological concerns are real and should be fair game politically.

From Slate

Related Words

• alleviate
• assuage
• calm
• ease
• lessen
• mitigate
• mollify
• pacify