temper
[noun]
Synonyms:
- rage, bad mood, fury, passion, tantrum
- irritability, hot-headedness, irascibility, passion, petulance, resentment, surliness
- self-control, calmness, composure, cool (slang), equanimity
- frame of mind, constitution, disposition, humour, mind, mood, nature, temperament
[verb]
Synonyms:
- moderate, assuage, lessen, mitigate, mollify, restrain, soften, soothe, tone down
- strengthen, anneal, harden, toughen

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Related Idioms: take the edge off, turn of mind, frame (or state) of mind
Related Words: dilute, season, ease, pacify, soften, adjust, modify, curb, tone (down), atmosphere, aura, climate, orientation, outlook, disposition, drift, leaning, tendency, trend, character, nature, peculiarity, condition, posture, state, attribute, property, quality, style, type, way, anger, fury, ire, rage, conniption, fit, outburst, tantrum

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. tem‧per¹ /ˈtempə $ -ər/ noun

1. [uncountable and countable] a tendency to become angry suddenly or easily:
That temper of hers will get her into trouble one of these days.
According to Nathan, Robin has quite a temper.
Theo needs to learn to control his temper.
quick/bad/fiery etc temper
Be careful, he’s got a pretty violent temper.
tempers flare (also tempers become frayed )British English (=people become angry)
Mason’s temper flared when he spotted his girlfriend kissing another man.

2. lose your temper to suddenly become very angry so that you cannot control yourself:
I’ve never seen Vic lose his temper.

3. [singular, uncountable] the way you are feeling at a particular time, especially when you are feeling angry for a short time
in a temper
It’s no use talking to him when he’s in a temper.
Pete hit his brother in a fit of temper.
be in a bad/foul temper (=to be angry)
Watch out – she’s been in a foul temper all day.
fly into a temper
Her boss would fly into a temper if a project wasn’t done on time.

4. keep your temper to stay calm when it would be easy to get angry:
I was finding it increasingly difficult to keep my temper.

5. good-tempered/foul-tempered/quick-tempered etc having a good, bad temper etc:
Minnie was always good-tempered and agreeable.

6. [singular] formal the general attitude that people have in a particular place at one time
temper of
the temper of life in Renaissance Italy
⇒ bad-tempered, even-tempered, ill-tempered

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. temper² verb [transitive]
[Date: 900-1000; Language: Latin; Origin: temperare 'to divide up properly, mix, keep within proper limits, temper']

1. formal to make something less severe or extreme
temper something with/by something
The heat in this coastal town is tempered by cool sea breezes.

2. to make metal as hard as is needed by heating it and then putting it in cold water:
tempered steel

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

temper
noun
I. tendency to become angry easily
ADJ. bad, fierce, fiery, nasty, terrible, vicious, violent | uncontrollable
QUANT. display, fit, flash, outburst He broke the chair in a fit of violent temper.
VERB + TEMPER have He has a nasty temper.
control, keep I only just managed to keep my temper with him.
fly into, lose She loses her temper at the drop of a hat (= without good reason).
TEMPER + VERB flare, rise Tempers flared as the traffic jam became worse.
cool (down)
TEMPER + NOUN tantrum
PREP. in a ~ She stormed out of the room in a temper.
PHRASES keep you temper in check/under control He had to learn to keep his temper under control before he could become a teacher.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

temper
II. way you are feeling
ADJ. bad, filthy, foul, ill, terrible Peter's comments were responsible for her ill temper.
good | frayed Frayed tempers at the end of the match led to three players being se
uncertain
VERB + TEMPER improve | recover, regain She regained her good temper after a chat.
TEMPER + VERB improve | fray, worsen
PREP. in a ~ He stormed out of the room in a temper.
PHRASES not be in the best of tempers I wasn't in the best of tempers when I arrived at the meeting.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

temper

a quick/short temper (=likely to get angry very easily)
He’s got a quick temper, which gets him into trouble.
a bad/terrible/nasty temper
He ran back home in a terrible temper.
a fiery/violent/explosive temper (=likely to get angry and violent very quickly)
Over the years, my sister has learned to control her fiery temper.
have a temper
Grandad had quite a temper, so we usually tried to keep out of his way.
be in a temper
She banged doors and screamed at her mother when she was in a temper.
control/keep your temper
She tried to speak calmly and control her temper.
lose your temper (=become angry)
It was hot and I was beginning to lose my temper.
fly into a temper (=suddenly become very angry)
He flew into a temper at the slightest thing.
sb’s temper flares (=they become angry)
On bad days, Elaine’s temper would flare into a violent rage.
a fit/flash/burst of temper (=when you are very angry for a short time)
A businessman assaulted his wife and son in a fit of temper, a court heard yesterday.
tempers get/become frayed British English (=people become annoyed)
People were pushing each other, and tempers were becoming frayed.
a temper tantrum (=a time when someone, especially a child, behaves very angrily and unreasonably)
My nephew has temper tantrums if he can’t get his own way.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

temper
ˈtempə
{v. phr.} To become very angry.
By the time we mention the name of her ex-husband, she flies into a rage.

See: GOD TEMPERS THE WIND TO THE SHORN LAMB, HOLD ONE'S TEMPER or KEEP ONE'S TEMPER, LOSE ONE'S TEMPER.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲