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Synonyms

placate

¹ American

[pley-keyt, plak-eyt] / ˈpleɪ keɪt, ˈplæk eɪt /

verb (used with object)

placated, placating

to appease or pacify, especially by concessions or conciliatory gestures.

to placate an outraged citizenry.

Synonyms:

satisfy, conciliate

placate ² American

[plak-eyt, -it] / ˈplæk eɪt, -ɪt /

Also placcate,

noun

Armor.

a piece of plate armor of the 15th to the 18th century protecting the lower part of the torso in front: used especially as a reinforcement over a breastplate.

placate British

/ pləˈkeɪt /

verb

(tr) to pacify or appease

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

placater noun
placation noun
unplacated adjective

Etymology

Origin of placate¹

First recorded in 1670–80; from Latin plācātus, past participle of plācāre “to quiet, calm, appease,” akin to placēre “to please”; cf. please

Origin of placate²

First recorded in 1625–35; apparently variant of placard

Explanation

If you placate someone, you stop them from being angry by giving them something or doing something that pleases them. If your dad is annoyed that you forgot to take out the trash, you might be able to placate him by doing the dishes. If your little sister is mad that the dog ate her favorite teddy bear, you could placate her by buying her an ice cream cone. A near synonym for placate is appease. The origin of placate is Latin placare, "to calm or soothe." The related Latin verb placere is the source of English please.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It sparked an all-hands-on-deck effort to placate Trump with a raft of trade proposals—and more.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

And she has one of the best laugh lines in the movie when she bats her eyes at the baddies and tries to placate them with, “You guys seem like good people.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026

Captain Cristian Romero's flying last-minute header salvaged a point for the visitors at Turf Moor but it was not enough to placate frustrated fans.

From Barron's • Jan. 24, 2026

Europe has tried to placate President Trump in his second term as best they can.

From BBC • Jan. 18, 2026

His foster mother at the time had tried to placate him with candy from the vending machine, but he had just cried under the table until she dragged him out and they went home.

From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023