Definition of Palliate

1. Atrial Fibrillation Slideshow Pictures
2. Bad Bugs and Their Bites Slideshow
3. Understanding Ulcerative Colitis Slideshow

Palliate: To treat partially and incompletely. To palliate a diseases is to treat it partially but not cure it completely. Palliation cloaks a disease. Palliate has several senses, including: to reduce the severity of (a disease); to moderate the intensity of something; and to cover by excuses and apologies. The Latin "pallium" referred to a type of cloak in ancient Greece and Rome and, later, to a white woolen band with pendants in front and back worn by the pope or an archbishop as a symbol of full episcopal authority. Pallium was modified to form "palliate," an adjective meaning "cloaked" or "concealed" and a verb meaning "to cloak," "to cloth," or "to shelter." Today "palliate" implies disguising or concealing badness or evil and suggests alleviating the vile effects of wickedness or illness.