Synonyms of placate

placate 1 of 3

verb (1)

ˈplā-ˌkāt 

as in to appease

to lessen the anger or agitation of

attempted to placate the screaming child by offering him a cookie

Synonyms & Similar Words

• appease
• soothe
• mollify
• pacify
• comfort
• propitiate
• calm
• please
• assuage
• conciliate
• satisfy
• disarm
• console
• gentle
• ingratiate
• delight
• tranquilize
• quiet
• gratify
• satiate
• content
• coax
• cajole
• endear (to)
• gladden
• indulge
• sate
• flatter
• hush
• wheedle
• cater (to)
• baby
• quench
• pamper
• coddle
• humor
• spoil
• sweeten
• soft-soap
• overpraise
• adulate
• sweet-talk
• mollycoddle
• blandish
• blarney
• dulcify

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• anger
• infuriate
• inflame
• outrage
• annoy
• enrage
• antagonize
• get
• bother
• irritate
• aggravate
• rile
• provoke
• ire
• put out
• cross
• burn (up)
• rouse
• irk
• vex
• exasperate
• rankle
• pique
• bug
• ruffle
• chafe
• grate
• harass
• gall
• pester
• persecute
• upset
• disturb
• worry
• incense
• roil
• distress
• agitate
• discomfort
• madden
• unsettle
• offend
• perturb
• harry
• slight
• fret
• insult
• nettle
• peeve
• affront
• unhinge

placating

2 of 3

adjective

as in appeasing

tending to lessen or avoid conflict or hostility

a placating comment that seemed to calm everyone down a bit

Synonyms & Similar Words

• appeasing
• conciliatory
• placatory
• soothing
• comforting
• mollifying
• benevolent
• propitiatory
• pacific
• peaceful
• calming
• kind
• pacifying
• quieting
• conciliating
• disarming
• gentle
• relaxing
• satisfying
• kindly
• ingratiating
• peacemaking
• winning
• passive
• obliging
• endearing
• peaceable
• tranquilizing
• unassertive
• nonbelligerent
• amiable
• surrendering
• winsome
• good-natured
• submissive
• unaggressive
• yielding
• lulling
• amicable
• affable
• agreeable
• genial
• good-tempered

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• provoking
• nagging
• inflammatory
• aggravating
• irritating
• annoying
• frustrating
• provocative
• vexing
• antagonizing
• irksome
• abrasive
• exasperating
• maddening
• offensive
• engaging
• hostile
• galling
• infuriating
• riling
• antagonistic
• rankling
• inimical
• nettling
• belligerent
• unfriendly
• nettlesome
• aggressive
• inhospitable
• unsympathetic
• military
• combative
• confrontational
• assertive
• chafing
• antipathetic
• bellicose
• incensing
• pugnacious
• quarrelsome
• truculent
• argumentative
• contentious
• warlike
• militant
• militaristic
• agonistic
• scrappy
• martial

placating

3 of 3

verb (2)

present participle of placate

as in comforting

to lessen the anger or agitation of

attempted to placate the screaming child by offering him a cookie

Synonyms & Similar Words

• appeasing
• comforting
• soothing
• calming
• mollifying
• pacifying
• consoling
• pleasing
• propitiating
• conciliating
• assuaging
• disarming
• satisfying
• gentling
• quieting
• delighting
• ingratiating
• contenting
• coaxing
• humoring
• tranquilizing
• gratifying
• hushing
• cajoling
• wheedling
• indulging
• flattering
• gladdening
• satiating
• endearing (to)
• quenching
• coddling
• sating
• catering (to)
• spoiling
• pampering
• mollycoddling
• babying
• adulating
• overpraising
• sweetening
• sweet-talking
• blarneying
• blandishing
• soft-soaping
• dulcifying

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• angering
• inflaming
• antagonizing
• getting
• enraging
• bothering
• infuriating
• outraging
• crossing
• incensing
• maddening
• riling
• aggravating
• irritating
• provoking
• bugging
• annoying
• ruffling
• rankling
• grating
• irking
• exasperating
• roiling
• burning (up)
• vexing
• iring
• piquing
• nettling
• putting out
• chafing
• rousing
• harassing
• galling
• persecuting
• pestering
• harrying
• agitating
• worrying
• upsetting
• insulting
• distressing
• disturbing
• fretting
• peeving
• perturbing
• offending
• unsettling
• slighting
• discomforting
• affronting
• unhinging

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb placate differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of placate are appease, conciliate, mollify, pacify, and propitiate. While all these words mean "to ease the anger or disturbance of," placate suggests changing resentment or bitterness to goodwill.

a move to placate local opposition

When can appease be used instead of placate?

The words appease and placate are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, appease implies quieting insistent demands by making concessions.

appease their territorial ambitions

In what contexts can conciliate take the place of placate?

While in some cases nearly identical to placate, conciliate suggests ending an estrangement by persuasion, concession, or settling of differences.

conciliating the belligerent nations

When is mollify a more appropriate choice than placate?

The synonyms mollify and placate are sometimes interchangeable, but mollify implies soothing hurt feelings or rising anger.

a speech that mollified the demonstrators

When is it sensible to use pacify instead of placate?

Although the words pacify and placate have much in common, pacify suggests a soothing or calming.

pacified by a sincere apology

When would propitiate be a good substitute for placate?

The meanings of propitiate and placate largely overlap; however, propitiate implies averting anger or malevolence especially of a superior being.

propitiated his parents by dressing up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of placate

Verb

By threading the needle, OpenAI found a way to placate both the Pentagon and its own employees, many of whom are skeptical of AI use in the military. —Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 28 Feb. 2026

But that hasn’t placated Johnson critics who are looking to capitalize on openings to check the mayor’s budget team. —Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 4 Feb. 2026

Verb

The nominee will face a high-wire act of placating the president (who wants steep interest rate cuts) while keeping the trust of investors worried about high inflation and political influence on the central bank. —Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 28 Oct. 2025

This replaces placating with directly communicating out of respect for your longstanding relationship. —R. Eric Thomas, Mercury News, 27 Sep. 2025

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