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allay definition

al·lay (a lā′, ə-)

transitive verb allayed -·layed′, allaying -·lay′·ing

  1. to put (fears, etc.) to rest; quiet; calm
  2. to lessen, relieve, or alleviate (pain, grief, etc.)

Etymology: ME alaien, alleggen, with confusion of form and meaning of OE alecgan (< a-, down + lecgan, to lay) & OFr alegier (<LL alleviare: see alleviate)

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

allay Synonyms

allay

v.

  1. To lessen

    reduce, relieve, alleviate, moderate; see decrease 2, relieve 2.

  2. To soothe

    mollify, pacify, ease; see quiet 1. See syn. study atrelieve.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

allay Usage Examples

Object

  • fear: More also needs to be done to allay parental fears over the risk of injury in rugby matches.

Modifying Another Word

  • not: During Health Questions the Health Secretary did not allay my fears.
allay usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

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MLA Style

"allay." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/allay>

APA Style

allay. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/allay

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