Conciliatory

hard

kun-SIL-ee-uh-tor-ee

adjective

Definition

intended to placate or win goodwill; appeasing

Examples

After the heated argument, she adopted a conciliatory tone to mend the rift.
His conciliatory gesture toward the rival faction eased months of tension.

Synonyms

placatingappeasingmollifyingpeacemaking

Antonyms

antagonistichostileprovocativecombative

Categories

GRE Tip

Conciliatory is a hard-difficulty GRE word. On the GRE, you might see it paired with synonyms like "placating" or "appeasing" in Sentence Equivalence questions. Look for contrast clues (however, despite, although) that signal the opposite meaning. Words like "antagonistic".

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