anodyne

1 of 2

adjective

an·o·dyne ˈa-nə-ˌdīn How to pronounce anodyne (audio)

: serving to alleviate pain

the anodyne properties of certain drugs

: not likely to offend or arouse tensions : innocuous

… his speech contained a single anodyne reference to the man who preceded him.

John F. Burns

anodyne

2 of 2

noun

: something that soothes, calms, or comforts

The sweetness of sojourn there … was an anodyne for the sorrows the pilgrims had endured …

Amy Kelly

: a drug that allays pain

Did you know?

Anodyne came to English via Latin from Greek anṓdynos (meaning "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain"), and it has been used as both an adjective and a noun ("something that soothes, calms, or comforts") since the 16th century. It has sometimes been used of things that dull or lull the senses and render painful experiences less so. British statesman Edmund Burke used it this way, for example, in 1790 when he referred to flattery as an "anodyne draft of oblivion" that renders one (in this particular case, the deposed King Louis XVI) forgetful of the flatterer's true feelings. Nowadays, in addition to describing things that dull pain, anodyne can also refer to that which doesn't cause discomfort in the first place.

Example Sentences

Adjective the otherwise anodyne comments sounded quite inflammatory when taken out of context Noun the dentist prescribed an anodyne after the root canal as an anodyne for the stress and superficiality of the modern world, there's nothing better than reading a literary classic of substance and insight

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Since the start of the Covid-19 crisis, Zoom has evolved from being anodyne conference call software to a household name symbolizing much of remote-work life.

Marty Swant, Forbes, 29 Sep. 2021 But that seems to be an anodyne way of saying that the exact nature, cause, and solution to burnout aren't entirely clear.

Whizy Kim, refinery29.com, 28 Sep. 2021 When skeptics question tenets of critical race theory that are far more radical than this anodyne description suggests, these same activists perform one of two rhetorical maneuvers.

Cameron Hilditch, National Review, 11 July 2021 For Eastman, an anodyne new music culture that prided itself on functioning outside of personal identity is what needed changing.

Los Angeles Times, 23 June 2021 For officials of both the U.S. Armed Forces Radio and the Chinese Communist Party, Denver offered an anodyne simplicity fit for programming, and in this simplicity, millions of Asian listeners found resonance.

Jason Jeong, The Atlantic, 4 May 2021 Whether this shift toward a more anodyne, algorithmic ethos is a good thing, of course, depends on your vantage point.

New York Times, 17 Feb. 2021 Despite massive public investment, Victory Park is only just emerging from its status as an anodyne, corporate non-place into an area that bears a semblance of humanity.

Mark Lamster, Dallas News, 18 Dec. 2020 Another patient leaves an anodyne message requesting medication refills.

Danielle Ofri, The New Yorker, 1 Oct. 2020

Noun

Peterson pauses, running his hand along the blue aluminum-anodyne actuator machined to match the length of Daniel’s right thigh.

John Brant, Popular Mechanics, 27 Apr. 2020 This is the confluence that defines the spectacle: statistics, like photographs, have a kind of moral authority, one whose meaning may repel us but one that nevertheless encourages certainty, and thus anodyne.

Shannon Pufahl, The New York Review of Books, 21 Apr. 2020 Ten years ago, lazy auto writers used the Toyota Camry as shorthand for anodyne transportation, a car for people who think of cars as appliances.

Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 13 Mar. 2020 The result of all that rulemaking and political sensitivity is the anodyne Covid-19.

Adam Rogers, Wired, 11 Feb. 2020 To yield to the soft tyranny of transgender pronouns is to pretend that gender dysphoria is an anodyne lifestyle on which societal legitimacy should be conferred, not a psychological malady requiring compassion and psychological treatment.

Josh Hammer, National Review, 27 Jan. 2020 As head of state, the British monarch is expected to remain publicly neutral on political matters, and the queen’s addresses tend to be broad, anodyne and even a little opaque.

New York Times, 24 Dec. 2019 Santa Clausification’—the softening of a public figure’s profile into something more anodyne and broadly acceptable.

Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 25 Sep. 2019 Even gluttony can be spun as anodyne, a form of self-care.

Carrie Battan, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2019 See More

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

borrowed from Latin anōdynus "allaying pain," borrowed from Greek anṓdynos "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain," from an- an- + -ōdynos, adjective derivative (with compositional lengthening) of odýnē "pain," of uncertain origin

Note: In earlier etymological dictionaries (Frisk, Chantraine), odýnē is taken be a derivative, with a heteroclitic suffix *-ur-/*-un-, of the verbal base *h₁ed- "eat" (see eat entry 1), with the assumed change of e > o by vowel assimilation before a following -u-; allegedly comparable are Armenian erkn "labor pains, grief," Old Irish idu "pain, pangs of childbirth." More recently a different hypothesis proposes that the base of odýnē is a verbal root *h₃ed- "bite, sting," seen perhaps in Lithuanian úodas "gnat" (< *h₃od-o-). (See R. Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek, Brill, 2010.)

Noun

borrowed from Latin anōdynum "something allaying pain," borrowed from Greek anṓdynon "freedom from pain," noun derivative of anṓdynos "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain" — more at anodyne entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1543, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

circa 1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1

单词	anodynes
释义	anodyne 1 of 2 adjective an·o·dyne ˈa-nə-ˌdīn 1 : serving to alleviate pain the anodyne properties of certain drugs 2 : not likely to offend or arouse tensions : innocuous … his speech contained a single anodyne reference to the man who preceded him. John F. Burns anodyne 2 of 2 noun 1 : something that soothes, calms, or comforts The sweetness of sojourn there … was an anodyne for the sorrows the pilgrims had endured … Amy Kelly 2 : a drug that allays pain Did you know? Anodyne came to English via Latin from Greek anṓdynos (meaning "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain"), and it has been used as both an adjective and a noun ("something that soothes, calms, or comforts") since the 16th century. It has sometimes been used of things that dull or lull the senses and render painful experiences less so. British statesman Edmund Burke used it this way, for example, in 1790 when he referred to flattery as an "anodyne draft of oblivion" that renders one (in this particular case, the deposed King Louis XVI) forgetful of the flatterer's true feelings. Nowadays, in addition to describing things that dull pain, anodyne can also refer to that which doesn't cause discomfort in the first place. Synonyms Adjective benign harmless hurtless innocent innocuous inoffensive safe white Noun analgesic anesthetic painkiller See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Adjective the otherwise anodyne comments sounded quite inflammatory when taken out of context Noun the dentist prescribed an anodyne after the root canal as an anodyne for the stress and superficiality of the modern world, there's nothing better than reading a literary classic of substance and insight Recent Examples on the Web Adjective Since the start of the Covid-19 crisis, Zoom has evolved from being anodyne conference call software to a household name symbolizing much of remote-work life. Marty Swant, Forbes, 29 Sep. 2021 But that seems to be an anodyne way of saying that the exact nature, cause, and solution to burnout aren't entirely clear. Whizy Kim, refinery29.com, 28 Sep. 2021 When skeptics question tenets of critical race theory that are far more radical than this anodyne description suggests, these same activists perform one of two rhetorical maneuvers. Cameron Hilditch, National Review, 11 July 2021 For Eastman, an anodyne new music culture that prided itself on functioning outside of personal identity is what needed changing. Los Angeles Times, 23 June 2021 For officials of both the U.S. Armed Forces Radio and the Chinese Communist Party, Denver offered an anodyne simplicity fit for programming, and in this simplicity, millions of Asian listeners found resonance. Jason Jeong, The Atlantic, 4 May 2021 Whether this shift toward a more anodyne, algorithmic ethos is a good thing, of course, depends on your vantage point. New York Times, 17 Feb. 2021 Despite massive public investment, Victory Park is only just emerging from its status as an anodyne, corporate non-place into an area that bears a semblance of humanity. Mark Lamster, Dallas News, 18 Dec. 2020 Another patient leaves an anodyne message requesting medication refills. Danielle Ofri, The New Yorker, 1 Oct. 2020 Noun Peterson pauses, running his hand along the blue aluminum-anodyne actuator machined to match the length of Daniel’s right thigh. John Brant, Popular Mechanics, 27 Apr. 2020 This is the confluence that defines the spectacle: statistics, like photographs, have a kind of moral authority, one whose meaning may repel us but one that nevertheless encourages certainty, and thus anodyne. Shannon Pufahl, The New York Review of Books, 21 Apr. 2020 Ten years ago, lazy auto writers used the Toyota Camry as shorthand for anodyne transportation, a car for people who think of cars as appliances. Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 13 Mar. 2020 The result of all that rulemaking and political sensitivity is the anodyne Covid-19. Adam Rogers, Wired, 11 Feb. 2020 To yield to the soft tyranny of transgender pronouns is to pretend that gender dysphoria is an anodyne lifestyle on which societal legitimacy should be conferred, not a psychological malady requiring compassion and psychological treatment. Josh Hammer, National Review, 27 Jan. 2020 As head of state, the British monarch is expected to remain publicly neutral on political matters, and the queen’s addresses tend to be broad, anodyne and even a little opaque. New York Times, 24 Dec. 2019 Santa Clausification’—the softening of a public figure’s profile into something more anodyne and broadly acceptable. Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 25 Sep. 2019 Even gluttony can be spun as anodyne, a form of self-care. Carrie Battan, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2019 See More Word History Etymology Adjective borrowed from Latin anōdynus "allaying pain," borrowed from Greek anṓdynos "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain," from an- an- + -ōdynos, adjective derivative (with compositional lengthening) of odýnē "pain," of uncertain origin Note: In earlier etymological dictionaries (Frisk, Chantraine), odýnē is taken be a derivative, with a heteroclitic suffix -ur-/-un-, of the verbal base h₁ed- "eat" (see eat entry 1), with the assumed change of e > o by vowel assimilation before a following -u-;* allegedly comparable are Armenian erkn "labor pains, grief," Old Irish idu "pain, pangs of childbirth." More recently a different hypothesis proposes that the base of odýnē is a verbal root h₃ed- "bite, sting," seen perhaps in Lithuanian úodas* "gnat" (< h₃od-o-). (See R. Beekes, Etymological Dictionary of Greek,* Brill, 2010.) Noun borrowed from Latin anōdynum "something allaying pain," borrowed from Greek anṓdynon "freedom from pain," noun derivative of anṓdynos "free from pain, causing no pain, harmless, allaying pain" — more at anodyne entry 1 First Known Use Adjective 1543, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Noun circa 1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Medical Definition anodyne 1 of 2 adjective an·o·dyne ˈan-ə-ˌdīn : serving to ease pain anodyne 2 of 2 noun : a drug that allays pain anodynes noun plural of anodyne 1 as in sedatives something (as a drug) that relieves pain the dentist prescribed an anodyne after the root canal Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance sedatives analgesics painkillers tranquillizers tranquilizers opiates anesthetics narcotics 2 as in opiates something that soothes, calms, or induces passivity or a sense of security as an anodyne for the stress and superficiality of the modern world, there's nothing better than reading a literary classic of substance and insight Synonyms & Similar Words opiates narcotics tranquillizers tranquilizers anesthetics sedatives hypnotics soporifics palliatives security blankets pacifiers
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anodyne

adjective

noun

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Medical Definition

adjective

noun

noun