mediate

verb · adjective

Simple meaning

To help two sides in an argument reach an agreement.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

meedeeayt

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈmidieɪt

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

Act between parties with a view to reconciling differences
transitive
To resolve differences, or to bring about a settlement, between conflicting parties.
To act as an intermediary causal or communicative agent; to convey.
To communicate via media; to frame; to provide a cultural narrative about.
To act as a spiritualistic medium.
To divide into two equal parts.

adjective

Acting through a mediating agency, indirect.
Acting through or dependent on an intervening agency
“The disease spread by mediate as well as direct contact.”
Intermediate between extremes.
Gained or effected by a medium or condition.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: C1 · Advanced
Frequency: Uncommon
Typical Use: Primarily written

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Act between parties with a view to reconciling differences

Used this way, mediate is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: No strong connotation
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Nearby words

liaise , rarer, so it draws attention

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use mediate

“The disease spread by mediate as well as direct contact.”adjective

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

mediate knowledgereceptors mediatemediate cell

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

mediatornounPerson or profession
A negotiator who acts as a link between parties.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

caspase-mediated cell deathnounCompound term
A type of cell death in which the cell uses specialized cellular machinery to kill itself.
cell-mediated immune responsenounCompound term
An immune response (chiefly against viral or fungal invasions or transplanted tissue) that involves T cells.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

intermediate vector bosonnounRelated term
A gauge boson that mediates weak interactions between particles.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: act between parties with a view to reconciling differences

liaiseRare

Antonyms

Sense: acting through a mediating agency or indirect

immediate

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.