Edulcorate
/ɪˈdʌl.kə.reɪt/noun
To make something less bitter, harsh, or severe; to sweeten or soften.
Did you know?Edulcorate comes from Latin sugar-language: e- (“out”) + dulcis (“sweet”), and it entered English through alchemical and scholarly writing where “sweetening” often meant disguising harshness.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dl̥kʷ-
“sweet, pleasant”
Latin
Latin
dulcis
“sweet, pleasing”
Late Latin
Latin
edulcorare
“to make sweet, sweeten”
16th Century
English
edulcorate
“to sweeten or make less harsh”
Modern English
English
edulcorate
“to soften, sugarcoat, or make palatable”
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