n. The act of moderating or restraining; the process of tempering, lessening, or mitigating.n. The state or quality of being moderate or keeping a due mean between opposite extremes; freedom from excess; temperance; due restraint.n. Habitual slowness of thought, speech, or action; great deliberation.n. The act of presiding over, regulating, or directing as a moderator.n. plural In the University of Oxford, England, the first public examination for degrees.n. Synonyms Forbearance, equanimity, sobriety, self-restraint, mildness, composure, calmness.