Attenuate

to weaken or reduce in force, intensity, effect, quant-ty, or value:
to attenuate desire.
to make thin; make slender or fine.
bacteriology, immunology. to render less virulent, as a strain of pathogenic virus or bacterium.
electronics. to decrease the amplitude of (an electronic signal).
to become thin or fine; lessen.
weakened; diminishing.
botany. tapering gradually to a narrow extremity.
contemporary examples

israeli retaliation of some kind is probably inevitable, but american influence can do much to attenuate the damage it causes.
the palestinian choice—and ours hussein ibish november 25, 2012

historical examples

it will attenuate, at least with respect to him, the severity of simple minds.
cosmopolis, complete paul bourget

the venetian shutters often had to be lowered in the summer to attenuate the great heat.
the three cities trilogy, complete emile zola

first of all (p. 323) we remember pictures of ladies pale and attenuate poring with tender interest over vermilion scarfs.
the gentle art of making enemies james mcneill whistler

i shall not attempt to laugh off the question, or to attenuate its importance.
chapter of autobiography w e gladstone

but the important thing is that the sacrilege should be accompanied with precautions which attenuate it.
the elementary forms of the religious life emile durkheim

it does not attenuate the power and originality of his themes that they are essentially of the piano.
unicorns james huneker

there is no stalk, the body being fixed by the attenuate posterior end.
marine protozoa from woods hole gary n. calkins

it would not have been difficult to attenuate the coincidence.
play-making william archer

some circ-mstances aggravate the evil in a deed, others excuse or attenuate it.
the ethics of medical homicide and mutilation austin o’malley

verb (əˈtɛnjʊˌeɪt)
to weaken or become weak; reduce in size, strength, density, or value
to make or become thin or fine; extend
(transitive) to make (a pathogenic bacterium, virus, etc) less virulent, as by culture in special media or exposure to heat
adjective (əˈtɛnjʊɪt; -ˌeɪt)
diluted, weakened, slender, or reduced
(botany) tapering gradually to a point
v.

“to make thin, to make less,” 1520s, from latin attenuatus “enfeebled, weak,” past participle of attenuare “to make thin, lessen, diminish,” from ad- “to” (see ad-) + tenuare “make thin,” from tenuis “thin” (see tenet). related: attenuated; attenuating. earlier was middle english attenuen “to make thin (in consistency),” early 15c.

attenuate at·ten·u·ate (ə-těn’yōō-āt’)
v. at·ten·u·at·ed, at·ten·u·at·ing, at·ten·u·ates

to reduce in force, value, amount, or degree; weaken; diminish.

to make bacteria or viruses less virulent.

adj.
reduced or weakened, as in strength, value, or virulence.