Soften

Verb

 * 1)  To make something soft or softer.
 * Soften the butter before beating in the sugar.
 * 1)  To undermine the morale of someone (often soften up).
 * Before the invasion, we softened up the enemy with the artillery.
 * 1)  To make less harsh
 * Having second thoughts, I softened my criticism.
 * 1)  To become soft or softer
 * The butter softened as it warmed up.

Thesaurus
abate, absorb the shock, adjust to, affect, agree, allay, alleviate, allow for, alter, anesthetize, appease, assent, assuage, attemper, baffle, bank the fire, benumb, blunt, blur, box in, break the fall, castrate, chasten, circumscribe, color, come home to, concur, condition, consent, constrain, control, cushion, damp, dampen, de-emphasize, deaden, deaden the pain, deafen, decry, defocus, demasculinize, devaluate, devalue, dim, diminish, downplay, dull, ease, ease matters, ease up, effeminate, effeminatize, effeminize, emasculate, extenuate, film, fluff, fog, foment, geld, gentle, give in, give relief, give way, gloss over, go deep, go through one, grieve, hedge, hedge about, ignore, keep within bounds, knead, laxate, lay, leaven, lenify, lessen, let up, lighten, limber, limber up, limit, loosen, lose resolution, lower, lull, make allowance for, mark down, mash, massage, mellow, melt, melt the heart, milden, mince, mist, mitigate, moderate, modify, modulate, mollify, move, muffle, mute, narrow, neutralize, numb, obtund, offset, pad, pale, palliate, penetrate, pierce, play down, plump, poultice, pour balm into, pour oil on, pulp, qualify, quell, quiet, quieten, reach, reduce, reduce the temperature, regulate by, relax, relieve, restrain, restrict, sadden, salve, season, set conditions, set limits, shake up, show consideration, show mercy, show pity, sissify, slacken, slake, slow down, slur over, smart, smash, smother, sober, sober down, soft-pedal, soften the blow, soften up, soothe, squash, stifle, still, sting, stir, stop, stupe, subdue, succumb, supple, suppress, surrender, tame, temper, tenderize, tone down, touch, touch a chord, tune down, turn down, underplay, underrate, undervalue, varnish, weaken, whitewash, womanize, write down, write off, yield

Etymology
From

Translations

 * Albanian: zbut
 * Danish:
 * Dutch:
 * Italian: ammorbidire
 * Latin: mollis
 * Norwegian: bløtgjøre
 * Romanian: muia, înmuia


 * Russian:,  ; размягчать , размягчить
 * Spanish:
 * Swedish:
 * Tagalog: lumambot
 * !Xóõ: g!xàn


 * Danish:


 * Russian: ,


 * Danish:
 * Russian: смягчаться, смягчиться ; размягчаться , размягчиться


 * Spanish: