abate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to reduce in amount, degree, intensity, etc.; lessen; diminish: to abate one's enthusiasm.
to abate a tax;
to abate one's enthusiasm.
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Law.
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to put an end to or suppress (a nuisance).
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to suspend or extinguish (an action).
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to annul (a writ).
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to deduct or subtract.
to abate part of the cost.
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to omit.
to abate all mention of names.
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to remove, as in stone carving, or hammer down, as in metalwork, (a portion of a surface) in order to produce a figure or pattern in low relief.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to make or become less in amount, intensity, degree, etc
the storm has abated
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(tr) law
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to remove, suppress, or terminate (a nuisance)
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to suspend or extinguish (a claim or action)
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to annul (a writ)
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(intr) law (of a writ, legal action, etc) to become null and void
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(tr) to subtract or deduct, as part of a price
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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abatesimple
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abatessimple
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have abatedperfect
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has abatedperfect
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am abatingprogressive
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are abatingprogressive
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is abatingprogressive
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have been abatingperfect progressive
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has been abatingperfect progressive
Past
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abatedsimple
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had abatedperfect
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was abatingprogressive
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were abatingprogressive
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had been abatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of abate
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Middle French abatre “to beat down,” equivalent to a- a- 5 + batre, from Late Latin batere for Latin battuere “to beat”; a- perhaps also understood as a- 3
Explanation
Something that abates becomes fewer or less intense. Your enthusiasm for skiing might abate after falling off a ski lift and getting a mouthful of snow. Abate comes from the Old French verb abattre, "to beat down," and means to reduce or become less intense or numerous. As an intransitive verb, it is often used with something physically, emotionally, or figuratively violent, as in "the flood of fan mail began to abate." Using it transitively, if you take measures to abate pollution or noise, you reduce them. Pronounce abate with the stress on the second syllable (uh-BATE).
Vocabulary lists containing abate
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Hatchet
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Richard Moody, chief economist at Regions Financial Corp., thinks Warsh could start to lay out the case for a resumption of interest-rate cuts once inflation pressures have begun to abate.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 14, 2026
The worst headwinds could abate this year even if earnings are soft, one analyst says.
From Barron's ● Apr. 20, 2026
They accused the oil companies of creating a public nuisance by altering the environment and leaving the county to pay to abate growing hazards such as the flooding that tests roads and bridges.
From Salon ● Apr. 10, 2026
And the pressure in the pipeline isn’t about to abate.
From Barron's ● Mar. 25, 2026
Harry had not expected Hermione’s anger to abate overnight, and was therefore unsurprised that she communicated mainly by dirty looks and pointed silences the next morning.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Under the current policy, the city abates 90 percent of property taxes on conversions that set aside at least 25 percent of units as affordable housing.
From Barron's ● Jun. 14, 2026
Analysts expect their share prices to remain under pressure until the pace of redemptions abates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
Most of the museum’s important documents have been preserved online, she said, and she is hoping that the island will restore at least some of the buildings when the fire abates.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 10, 2023
Some experts argue that with the U.S. opening back up, the likely causes of the spikes in violence nationwide are easing as the pandemic abates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2022
Salvage teams have been notified and will locate and sink the container when the storm abates.
From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin
“It’s the predominance of this fear that they’ve heard in the media — and that’s largely abated — that a Democrat won’t make it to the runoff,” Mitchell said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026
A remarkable dividend of the new approaches to crime and welfare, one with only anecdotal rather than social-science evidence, was a dramatic thaw in race relations, as fear and resentment abated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026
A note from Oxford Economics pointed to improving dynamics in March after winter storms abated.
From Barron's ● Apr. 1, 2026
The RSF has verbally accepted a Quad roadmap for peace beginning with a humanitarian truce, but neither side has formally responded and fighting has accelerated rather than abated.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2026
The frenzy behind the shutters abated very slightly.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
The war in the Middle East — the most recent, and most severe, energy jolt — is showing no signs of abating.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Key details: Healthcare providers created about half of the new jobs in June, a big trend in the past two years that shows no sign of abating.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 1, 2026
Samsung shares have rallied 150% so far this year with Korea’s army of retail investors speculating on further gains as the supply=demand imbalance in memory chips shows no sign of abating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
Interest in options is at the highest level in market history with no signs of abating.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
Adrenaline had numbed her body for hours, abating all the usual signs of fatigue, but suddenly everything returned in a rush.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.