To have a strong influence against something, making it less likely to happen or be successful.
Examples:
His lack of effort may militate against his promotion.Their arguments will hardly militate for a drastic change.Circumstances did not militate in their favor this time.
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Antonyms:
Mitigate
/ˈmɪtəɡeɪt/
To make something less severe, harmful, or painful
Examples:
The company took steps to mitigate the potential risks.Strategies were developed to mitigate environmental damage.He worked tirelessly to mitigate the community's concerns.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Ways to tell them apart:
Militate is related to having an effect or influence against something, like a force acting in opposition.
Mitigate refers to making a situation or its consequences less severe, harmful, or painful.
To remember mitigate, think of miti as in minimize, which is similar to reducing severity.
Consider militate as relating to military action or force, although it doesn't directly relate to the military, it suggests a forceful influence.
Both words involve change, but militate is about an opposition or hindrance, while mitigate is about alleviation or reduction.