I. ˈpalēə̇t, -ēˌāt adjective
Etymology: Latin palliatus
1.
a. : covered with a mantle
b. : hidden , disguised
c. : mitigated, alleviated
2. : having a pallium
II. ˈpalēˌāt, usu -ād.+V verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Late Latin palliatus, past participle of palliare to cloak, from Latin pallium
transitive verb
1. obsolete : to cover with or as if with a mantle or cloak : cloak , shelter , hide , disguise
2. : to reduce the violence of (a disease) : cause to lessen or abate : ease without curing
3. : to cover with excuses : conceal or disguise the enormity of by excuses and apologies : extenuate , excuse
palliate faults
4. : to moderate the intensity of : lessen
palliate the boredom of our isolation
intransitive verb
obsolete : moderate , compromise
Synonyms:
extenuate , gloze , gloss , whitewash , whiten : palliate may stress disguising or concealing the badness or evil of and mitigating or alleviating their possible effects
resort to coercive force and suppression of civil liberties are readily palliated in nominally democratic communities when the cry is raised that “law and order” are threatened — John Dewey
writers of autobiographies, in so far as they are the chief factors in the action which they portray, palliate, embellish, or conceal — S.H.Adams
extenuate may imply intention of lessening seriousness or gravity by excuse, clement consideration of circumstances, or palliation
somewhat overpraised the virtues, and too much extenuated the faults — T.S.Eliot
he did not extenuate, he rather emphasized, the criminality of Catiline and his confederates — J.A.Froude
gloze may suggest aim to divert attention from the badness, evil, harshness, or unpleasantness of something unpleasant by specious irrelevance or dissembling
the article of January 1878 endeavored to gloze over this point as unsuited to the exoteric public addressed — Justus Buchler
our triangles do not have accurate straight lines for their sides nor exact points at their corners, but this is glozed over by saying that the sides are approximately straight and the corners approximately points — Bertrand Russell
gloss , often a close synonym for gloze , may suggest a distracting of attention from the bad or difficult by artful omission or by explanation that belittles them
when judges mask a change of substance, or gloss over its importance — B.N.Cardozo
rough hard-driving men seeking to gloss over the harsh and ugly realities of their calling — Walter O'Meara
whitewash and whiten may be used of attempts to cover up, distract attention from, or exculpate by superficial investigation, perfunctory trial, or other rigged procedure
if the police are out to whitewash the Mitchell family, I'll call in a bunch of reporters and tell them so — Mary R. Rinehart
use some family influence to whitewash past acts of collusion against the government — James Kelly