Meaning & use
appeasement
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Meanings
noununcountable
The act of giving in to the demands of an aggressive person or country to avoid conflict.
Grammar: Uncountable; used without 'a' or plural: 'the policy of appeasement'.
Patterns
- appeasement of someone
- a policy of appeasement
- appeasement toward someone
The government's appeasement of the rebels only encouraged more demands.
Critics argued that appeasement would lead to war, not peace.
The policy of appeasement in the 1930s is often cited as a failure.
nouncountable
Something done to soothe or satisfy someone, often by giving them what they want.
Grammar: Can be countable when referring to a specific act: 'an appeasement'.
Patterns
- an appeasement to someone
- offer appeasement
The small bonus was seen as an appeasement to the angry workers.
He offered a few concessions as an appeasement.
Word forms
| plural | appeasements |
|---|
Common combinations
- policy of appeasement
- The policy of appeasement failed to stop the invasion.
- appeasement of a dictator
- The appeasement of a dictator rarely brings lasting peace.
- criticize appeasement
- Many historians criticize appeasement as a weak strategy.
- a form of appeasement
- The treaty was seen as a form of appeasement.
Synonyms and how they differ
- concession
- A concession is something you agree to give up; appeasement often implies giving in to aggression.
- pacification
- Pacification means making peace, sometimes by force; appeasement means yielding to demands.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: appeasement or appeal?
appeasement vs appeal
Appeal means to make an urgent request or to attract; appeasement means giving in to demands.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'appeasement' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Appeasement is the act of giving in to demands, so option 0 is correct. Option 1 confuses with 'appeal', option 2 is not a feeling, and option 3 uses the noun as a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “appeasement”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.