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Mitigate vs Curtail - What's the difference?

mitigate | curtail |

In transitive terms the difference between mitigate and curtail

is that mitigate is to downplay while curtail is to shorten or abridge the duration of something; to truncate.

As a noun curtail is

a scroll termination, as of a step, etc.

mitigate

English

Verb

(mitigat)
  • To reduce, lessen, or decrease.
  • * 1795
  • Measures are pursuing to prevent or mitigate the usual consequences of such outrages, and with the hope of their succeeding at least to avert general hostility.
  • * 1813
  • But in yielding to it the retaliation has been mitigated as much as possible, both in its extent and in its character...
  • * 1896
  • Then they tell us that vaccination will mitigate the disease that it will make it milder.
  • * 1901 — , ch 7
  • Then I discovered the brilliance of the landscape around was mitigated by blue spectacles.
  • * 1920
  • The plague had not been kind to him, yet had left him this small furry thing to mitigate his sorrow; and when one is very young, one can find great relief in the lively antics of a black kitten.
  • To downplay.
  • Synonyms

    * (to reduce or lessen) check, diminish, ease, lighten, mollify, pacify, palliate

    Antonyms

    * (to reduce or lessen) aggrandize, aggravate, exacerbate, incite, increase, intensify, irritate, worsen

    Coordinate terms

    * (l)

    curtail

    English

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (obsolete) To cut short the tail of an animal
  • ''Curtailing horses procured long horse-hair.
  • To shorten or abridge the duration of something; to truncate.
  • When the audience grew restless, the speaker curtailed her speech.
  • (figuratively) To limit or restrict, keep in check.
  • Their efforts to curtail spending didn't quite succeed.
  • * Macaulay
  • Our incomes have been curtailed ; his salary has been doubled.

    Synonyms

    * (animal's tail) crop, dock * shorten * behedge, control, limit, restrain

    Derived terms

    * curtailer * curtailment

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (architecture) A scroll termination, as of a step, etc.
  • Anagrams

    *