mitigation

noun

mit·​i·​ga·​tion ˌmi-tə-ˈgā-shən 

plural mitigations

: the act of mitigating something or the state of being mitigated : the process or result of making something less severe, dangerous, painful, harsh, or damaging

mitigation of suffering

mitigation of punishment

There was, in sum, a period during the Cold War … when a mitigation of the Cold War, including a renegotiation of some of its most troublesome tensions, was possible or even probable.

—John Lukacs

Examples of mitigation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There are also mitigation plans for Florida scrub jays, eastern indigo snakes, gopher tortoises and bald eagles. —Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 June 2025

In May, state lawmakers passed a bill requiring the state's biggest cities and counties to create heat mitigation plans by next summer; it was signed into law this month. —Yvette Fernandez, NPR, 9 June 2025

The court appoints two defense lawyers, along with an investigator and a mitigation specialist. —Nicole Santa Cruz, ProPublica, 9 June 2025

Back then, the telecom giant notified affected customers, reset users' passcodes, and offered damage mitigation services like credit monitoring and identity theft protection. —Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 8 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mitigation

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Medical Definition

mitigation

noun

mit·​i·​ga·​tion ˌmit-ə-ˈgā-shən 

1

: the act of mitigating or state of being mitigated

the cure, prevention, or mitigation of disease

—Encyclopedia Americana

2

: something that mitigates

a large number of drugs and mitigations … at the clinic

—The Journal of the American Medical Association