English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Middle English tempred, itempered, ytempred, ytemprid, from Old English ġetemprod (tempered, moderate, goverened, cured), past participle of Old English ġetemprian (to temper, moderate, govern, cure), equivalent to temper +‎ -ed.

Adjective

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tempered (not comparable)

  1. (in combination) Having a specified disposition or temper.
    even-tempered
  2. Pertaining to the metallurgical process for finishing metals.
    • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “Chapter ?”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
      "Not forged!" and snatching Perth's levelled iron from the crotch, Ahab held it out, exclaiming — "Look ye, Nantucketer; here in this hand I hold his death! Tempered in blood, and tempered by lightning are these barbs; and I swear to temper them triply in that hot place behind the fin, where the white whale most feels his accursed life!"
  3. Pertaining to the industrial process for toughening glass, or to such toughened glass.
  4. Moderated or balanced by other considerations.
  5. (music) Pertaining to the well-tempered scale, where the twelve notes per octave of the standard keyboard are tuned in such a way that it is possible to play music in any major or minor key and it will not sound perceptibly out of tune.
Synonyms
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Antonyms
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Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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Partly from Middle English temperd, temprede, from Old English temprode, first and third person singular preterit of Old English temprian; and partly from Middle English tempred, i-tempred, from Old English ġetemprod. Equivalent to temper +‎ -ed.

Verb

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tempered

  1. simple past and past participle of temper

Anagrams

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