1
as in to appease
to lessen the anger or agitation of
the only thing that would pacify the child and end the tantrum was a new toy
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to subdue
to bring under one's control by force of arms
additional ground forces were needed to occupy those areas that had already been pacified
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pacify
The Gators raced out to a 13-7 lead against the Bulldogs after two quarters, but fans were not pacified by the product on the field.
—
Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Oct. 2025
To keep the Russian public pacified, the Kremlin ran its military campaign by recruiting volunteers, who were paid quite well, including criminals avoiding prison.
—Nina Khrushcheva, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
That transformed the industry by giving it a clear American base — and by pacifying agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission that had been, under Biden, openly hostile.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Rather than unifying and pacifying a populace, this kind of media encouraged idiosyncratic, extreme views.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pacify
Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Oct. 2025
To keep the Russian public pacified, the Kremlin ran its military campaign by recruiting volunteers, who were paid quite well, including criminals avoiding prison.
—Nina Khrushcheva, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
That transformed the industry by giving it a clear American base — and by pacifying agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission that had been, under Biden, openly hostile.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Rather than unifying and pacifying a populace, this kind of media encouraged idiosyncratic, extreme views.
—Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 8 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pacify
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pacify
Verb
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But that hasn’t appeased protesters at demonstrations throughout Los Angeles County.—
Hannah Fry,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
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The food finally lands with the guests, their dumb whims having been appeased.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Colleyville Heritage dumps Argyle in 2 OTs Colleyville Heritage got a hugh lay in by Sameer Johnson at the fourth quarter buzzer, off an assist by Dmauri Evans, to tie the game at 48 allowing the Panthers to subdue Argyle 57-51 in double overtime on Thursday.—
Darren Lauber,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Jan. 2026
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Nevertheless, the immediate market response to the recent earnings report was relatively subdued.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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While some apps are experimental or low-effort, the approach mirrors the early days of iOS and Android app stores, where quirky and test apps dominated before the ecosystem matured.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Jan. 2026
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The opposition dominates for spells but struggles to bypass his strong defence.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Skinny Pedro had conquered for each man in the camp the sacred right to choose how to confront his own death.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
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That, plus some Sunday morning news interviews and a shot at conquering Cuba, and all for the bargain basement price of one soul.—
Pat Beall,
Sun Sentinel,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Between 1995 and 2015, both publications—which have a combined circulation of some eighty thousand Canadian family doctors and pharmacists—regularly ran columns from the Motherisk team without subjecting them to peer review.—
Ben Taub,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
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While the Jacksonian program helped produce a massive depression, the Jacksonians’ intention was to accelerate capitalism by democratizing it, not to tame it by subjecting it to government planning.—
Walter Russell Mead,
The Atlantic,
24 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pacify.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pacify. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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