- to weaken or become weak; reduce in size, strength, density, or value
- to make or become thin or fine; extend
- diluted, weakened, slender, or reduced
- tapering gradually to a point
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
at•ten•u•ate /əˈtɛnyuˌeɪt/USA pronunciation
v. [~ + object], -at•ed, -at•ing.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- to reduce in force, intensity, effect, or strength;
weaken: to attenuate desire. - to make thin.
at•ten•u•ate
(v. ə ten′yo̅o̅ āt′;adj. ə ten′yo̅o̅ it, -āt′),USA pronunciation v., -at•ed, -at•ing, adj.
v.t.
v.i.
adj.
v.t.
- to weaken or reduce in force, intensity, effect, quantity, or value:to attenuate desire.
- to make thin;
make slender or fine. - Immunology[Bacteriol., Immunol.]to render less virulent, as a strain of pathogenic virus or bacterium.
- Electronicsto decrease the amplitude of (an electronic signal).
v.i.
- to become thin or fine;
lessen.
adj.
- weakened;
diminishing. - Botanytapering gradually to a narrow extremity.
- Latin attenuātus (past participle of attenuāre to thin, reduce). See at-, tenuis, -ate1
- 1520–30
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
attenuate vb /əˈtɛnjʊˌeɪt/
'attenuating' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
attenuation
- high-pass filter
- low-pass filter
- passive
- basset
- draft
- draw
- gilling
- goody
- tapotement