moderator

[ mod-uh-rey-ter ]

noun

1. a person or thing that moderates.
2. a person who presides over a panel discussion on radio or television.
3. a member of an online message board or electronic mailing list with privileges and responsibilities to approve or reject messages and uphold the terms of service.
4. a presiding officer, as at a public forum, a legislative body, or an ecclesiastical body in the Presbyterian Church.
5. Physics. a substance, as graphite or heavy water, used to slow neutrons to speeds at which they are more efficient in causing fission.

moderator

/ ˈmɒdəˌreɪtə /

noun

1. a person or thing that moderates
2. Presbyterian Church a minister appointed to preside over a Church court, synod, or general assembly
3. a presiding officer at a public or legislative assembly
4. a material, such as heavy water or graphite, used for slowing down neutrons in the cores of nuclear reactors so that they have more chance of inducing nuclear fission
5. an examiner at Oxford or Cambridge Universities in first public examinations
6. (in Britain and New Zealand) one who is responsible for consistency of standards in the grading of some educational assessments
7. a person who monitors the conversations in an on-line chatroom for bad language, inappropriate content, etc

moderator

/ mŏd′ə-rā′tər /

1. A substance, such as graphite, water, or heavy water, placed in a nuclear reactor to slow neutrons down to speeds at which they are more likely to be captured by fissionable components of a fuel (such as uranium-235) and less likely to be absorbed by nonfissionable components of a fuel (such as uranium-238).
2. Also called neutron moderator
3. See also slow neutron

Derived Forms

• ˈmodeˌratorship, noun

Other Words From

• mod·er·a·to·ri·al [mod-er-, uh, -, tawr, -ee-, uh, l, -, tohr, -], adjective
• moder·ator·ship noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of moderator¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin moderātor, equivalent to moderā ( rī ) to control ( moderate ) + -tor -tor

Example Sentences

Unlike other violations of Nextdoor rules, which are reported to community moderators, Covid-19 misinformation that’s flagged by users goes straight to Nextdoor’s hired support staff.

From Vox

In managing the public-facing part of TheDonald, Williams said moderators were deeply split on how aggressively to enforce site policies.

From Washington Post

Josh Redd, a rider who is one of the volunteer moderators of the Christian page, said he wasn’t aware if the rumors Love’s show was threatened were accurate.

From Washington Post

He advised the moderators to click on Robinhood CEO Vladimir Tenev so he could talk.

From Washington Post

The moderators wrapped up the session and closed out by playing “Starman” by David Bowie…

From TechCrunch

Moderator Jan Jarboe Russell, an author and writer for Texas Monthly, asked Rep. Castro whether politics was in his blood.

From The Daily Beast

Moderator Alicia Menendez, an anchor on the Fusion network, asked about the influence of her children.

From The Daily Beast

As a moderator was keen to point out, his name remains on the bill as a sponsor.

From The Daily Beast

After the laughter subsided, the moderator pressed, “What else do you know about her, any impressions of her?”

From The Daily Beast

“This is the biggest day in the history of The View,” current moderator Whoopi Goldberg announced at the top of the hour.

From The Daily Beast

He had the innate slant of mind that properly belongs to a moderator of mass meetings called to aggravate a crisis.

From Project Gutenberg

The moderator on this occasion was Theodore Beza, who had been specially invited to France.

From Project Gutenberg

This happens in most of the New England towns, where the same man is Moderator at the town-meetings for many years in succession.

From Project Gutenberg

The moderator and brethren ordained that she should be prohibited from performing any cure, under pain of incarceration.

From Project Gutenberg

A neutron moderator slows down the neutrons and thus makes them more likely to activate the calcium in the bones.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• mediator
• referee