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atenuar

to attenuate

verb ah-teh-NWAHR Rare
Descriptions & Qualities Degree

Origin: From Latin attenuare (to make thin), from tenuis (thin).

Also means

to soften

Usage Note

Atenuar means to lessen the intensity, force, or severity of something — used in legal contexts (circunstancias atenuantes, mitigating circumstances), acoustics, optics, and general discourse. It is a regular -ar verb despite the -uar ending. The related adjective atenuante is used in law specifically to mean 'mitigating'.

Examples

"El gobierno intentó atenuar el impacto de la crisis."

Natural Translation

The government tried to soften the impact of the crisis.

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