Advanced and Proficiency Vocabulary for Exams(e.g.GRE, Banks, Civil Services, SAT / LSAT). For IELTS/TOEFL, and everyday spoken vocabulary, go to our Spoken Vocabulary Database.
To ‘abate’ means to decrease in force or severity. This formal word implies that the diminishing is not immediate but rather occurs progressively. It can be used in a wide variety of contexts related to things that are physically, mentally, or emotionally intense, such as bad weather or illnesses, or something harsh in a different way, such as financial difficulties or contraints.
I think I’ll wait for the rain to abate before walking home from the office. I don’t want to get drenched.
The company was offered a substantial tax abatement to incentivize them to build their new headquarters in that city.
The epidemic shows little sign of abating in many countries, leaving them reliant on developing a vaccine to get a handle on it.