temper

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A tendency to become angry quickly.

   He has a bad temper and shouts when things go wrong.

2. 2
   noun

   A sudden burst of anger.

   She lost her temper and slammed the door.

3. 3
   noun

   Someone's general mood or state of mind.

   He was in a calm temper that morning.

4. 4
   verb

   To make metal or glass harder and stronger by heating and then cooling it.

   The blacksmith tempered the steel to make it tough.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Temper ultimately comes from Latin temperare “to mingle.” The verb first meant to bring a mixture to a suitable condition, while the noun referred to a proper balance of elements or qualities and became associated with the supposed balance of the four bodily humours and a person’s disposition.

From Middle English temperen, tempren, from Old English ġetemprian, temprian, borrowed from Latin temperō (“(transitive) to divide or proportion duly, to moderate, to regulate; (intransitive) to be moderate, temperate”), from tempus (“time, fit season”). Compare also French tempérer. Doublet of tamper. See temporal.

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External links

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• Cambridge Dictionary
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