Meaning of 'temper' (Webster Dictionary)
- The state of any compound substance which results from the
mixture of various ingredients; due mixture of different qualities;
just combination; as, the temper of mortar.
- Constitution of body; temperament; in old writers, the
mixture or relative proportion of the four humors, blood, choler,
phlegm, and melancholy.
- Disposition of mind; the constitution of the mind,
particularly with regard to the passions and affections; as, a calm
temper; a hasty temper; a fretful temper.
- Calmness of mind; moderation; equanimity; composure; as, to
keep one's temper.
- Heat of mind or passion; irritation; proneness to anger; --
in a reproachful sense.
- The state of a metal or other substance, especially as to
its hardness, produced by some process of heating or cooling; as, the
temper of iron or steel.
- Middle state or course; mean; medium.
- Milk of lime, or other substance, employed in the process
formerly used to clarify sugar.
- To accord; to agree; to act and think in conformity.
- To have or get a proper or desired state or quality; to
grow soft and pliable.
- To mingle in due proportion; to prepare by combining; to
modify, as by adding some new element; to qualify, as by an ingredient;
hence, to soften; to mollify; to assuage; to soothe; to calm.
- To fit together; to adjust; to accomodate.
- To bring to a proper degree of hardness; as, to temper
iron or steel.
- To govern; to manage.
- To moisten to a proper consistency and stir thoroughly,
as clay for making brick, loam for molding, etc.
- To adjust, as the mathematical scale to the actual
scale, or to that in actual use.
Meaning of 'temper' (Princeton's WordNet)
Meaning (1):
- a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling
Example in sentence:- he was in a bad humor;
- whether he praised or cursed me depended on his temper at the time
Meaning (2):
- a sudden outburst of anger
Example in sentence:- his temper sparked like damp firewood
Meaning (3):
- a disposition to exhibit uncontrolled anger
Example in sentence:- his temper was well known to all his employees
Meaning (4):
- make more temperate, acceptable, or suitable by adding something else
Example in sentence:- she tempered her criticism
Meaning (5):
- bring to a desired consistency, texture, or hardness by a process of gradually heating and cooling
Meaning (6):
- harden by reheating and cooling in oil
Definition
[ n.]