Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “moderate” come from?

Moderate comes from Middle English moderat, from Latin moderatus, the past participle of moderor meaning "to regulate," derived from modus meaning "measure."

moderate (English): Not excessive; acting in moderation; Mediocre;...

Definitions

  1. Not excessive; acting in moderation; Mediocre;...

Ancestry of “moderate”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishmoderat—
2Latinmoderātus—
3LatinmoderorI set a measure or bounds to; moderate, mitigate,...
4Latinmodusmeasure; bound, limit; manner , way , method
5Proto-Indo-Europeanmēd-—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanmed-to measure; to give advice; healing

Words derived from “moderate”

  • moderately
  • immoderate
  • immoderately
  • moderatism
  • moderateness
  • moderative
  • immoderateness
  • moderateth
  • nonmoderate
  • retromoderate
  • unmoderate
Every word from Proto-Indo-European med- →