anodyne

noun
UK: /ˈæn.ə.daɪn/
US: /ˈæn.ə.daɪn/

  1. A medicine used to relieve pain.

    1. The doctor gave me an anodyne for my headache. [ ] [ ]
    2. His speech was full of anodynes, intended to soothe the public rather than address the real issues. [ ] [ ]

Synonyms

analgesic inoffensive painkiller bland soothing harmless
anodyne adjective

  1. Serving to alleviate pain or suffering; soothing.

    1. The anodyne effect of the lotion helped ease the sunburn. [ ] [ ]
    2. The movie, though visually appealing, offered an anodyne narrative lacking in depth or originality. [ ] [ ]

  2. Not likely to cause offense or disagreement and intended to calm, innocuous.

    1. The politician offered anodyne comments during the debate. [ ] [ ]
    2. Faced with a controversial topic, the company issued an anodyne statement that pleased no one. [ ] [ ]

Frequently Asked Questions

The phonetic transcription of "anodyne" is /ˈæn.ə.daɪn/ in British English and /ˈæn.ə.daɪn/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "anodyne": analgesic, inoffensive, painkiller, bland, soothing, harmless.

Example usage of "anodyne": "The doctor gave me an anodyne for my headache.". More examples on the page.