Noun

(en noun)

the act or result of modifying or the condition of being modified

an alteration or adjustment to something

* Jim's modification to the radio's tuning resulted in clearer sound.

a change to an organism as a result of its environment that is not transmissable to offspring

* Due to his sunbathing, Jim's body experienced modifications : he got a tan.

(linguistics) a change to a word when it is borrowed by another language

* The Chinese word "kòu tóu" had a modification made to become the English "kowtow" .

(linguistics) the change undergone by a word when used in a construction (for instance am'' => '' 'm'' in ''I'm )

Noun

The state or quality of being moderate; avoidance of extremes

* {{quote-book

, passage=...It regulates and governs the Passions of the Mind, and brings them into due moderation and frame... , page=17 , title=An Account of the Growth of Deism in England , author=William Stephens , year=1696}}

* 1772 , , [http://books.google.com/books?id=twVuAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA394]:

Mr. Chairman, at this moment I stand astonished at my own moderation !

* 1821 October 12, , [http://books.google.com/books?id=5q4XBa5jsy8C&pg=PA7]:

America is a model of force and freedom and moderation - with all the coarseness and rudeness of its people.

An instance of moderating: bringing something away from extremes, especially in a beneficial way

* {{quote-news, year=1936, date=March, work=The Southern Lumberman citation

, passage=With the quick moderation of the weather some buying has appeared that had been held up because of the extremely cold weather

The process of moderating a discussion

The moderation of a large online forum can be hard work.