Mitigate

Part of speech: verb (v.)

1. To make less severe, intense, harsh, rigorous, painful, etc.; to soften; to meliorate; to alleviate; to diminish; to lessen; as, to mitigate heat or cold; to mitigate grief.

2. To make mild and accessible; to mollify; -- applied to persons. [Obs.] This opinion ... mitigated kings into companions. Burke.

Synonyms: alleviate; assuage; allay. See Alleviate.