temperament
/ˈtɛmp(ə)rəm(ə)nt
/noun
1A person’s or animal’s nature, especially as it permanently affects their behaviour: she had an artistic temperament...
- One's diet for example, can affect the body's temperaments and thus influence ones's intellectual moral character.
- Planetary characteristics are defined by these humoural temperaments where, as in nature, warmth and moisture promote health and vitality whilst cold and dryness are conducive to decay.
- In Hinduism you have many deities with various temperaments and nature, so you have the luxury of choosing and bonding with the deity which suits your nature.
Synonyms
disposition, nature, character, personality, make-up, constitution, complexion, temper, mind, spirit, stamp, mettle, mould;
mood, frame of mind, cast of mind, bent, tendency, attitude, outlook
archaic grain, humour
1.1 [mass noun] The tendency to behave angrily or emotionally: he had begun to show signs of temperament...
- Women with the aspect often have an excessively emotional temperament.
- His emotional and dramatic temperament is well suited to the imaginative and affective dimensions of Ignatian prayer.
- But his volatile temperament sometimes landed him in serious trouble with the authorities.
Synonyms
volatility, excitability, emotionalism, mercurialness, capriciousness, hot-headedness, quick-temperedness, hot-temperedness, irritability, impatience, petulance;
moodiness, touchiness, sensitivity, oversensitivity, hypersensitivity
2 [mass noun] The adjustment of intervals in tuning a piano or other musical instrument so as to fit the scale for use in different keys; in equal temperament, the octave consists of twelve equal semitones: this temperament became standard tuning for all the new organs...
- The whole topic of temperament and tuning is sensibly presented, and there are even hints on the purchase and care of instruments.
- In this equal temperament system of tuning, the frequencies of notes on a keyboard are related by a fairly simple mathematical relationship involving the number of keys (half-steps) between the notes.
- The middle octave on the piano is shown as a standard example of equal temperament.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Latin temperamentum 'correct mixture', from temperare 'mingle'. In early use the word was synonymous with the noun temper.