▪ I. temper, n.
(ˈtɛmpə(r))
Forms: 4–6 tempre, 5 tempere, -yr, -our, -ure, tymper, 6– temper.
[f. temper v. Cf. rare OF. tempre proportion, etc. (12th c. in Godef. Compl.), later and mod.F. trempe (15th c.) tempering, temper of steel, physical constitution of man.]
I. † 1. The due or proportionate mixture or combination of elements or qualities; the condition or state resulting from such combination; proper or fit condition; in temper, out of temper, in, out of proper condition, etc. Now rare or Obs.
| 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 75 Þere is helþe, for þe aier is in tempre, noþer to hote noþer to colde. 1422 tr. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv. 246 Als longe as the natural hette duryth in ryght tempure by euenesse of the foure humores. 1548 Udall Erasm. Par. Luke ix. 86 b, The delectable swetenesse of the glorie should be brought to a tempre with the mencion of death. 1573 Treas. Hid. Secrets (1633) xviii, Keepe your water in a temper; and, when it is very hot, let it out, and put it in cold water. 1579 Lyly Euphues (Arb.) 138 For the curing and keeping in temper of the body. 1607 Hieron Wks. I. 191 It shall be wisedome for vs..to sing of mercy and iudgment too; both together will make an excellent temper. 1622 Rel. Eng. Plant. in Plymouth N. Eng. in Arber Pilgr. Fathers (1897) 448 To make our pieces and furniture ready, which by the moisture and rain were out of temper. 1651 T. Stanley Poems 106 As soon as the cup was brought tempered with water, they call on Jupiter..the author of temper and commixtion. 1655 Moufet & Bennet Health's Impr. (1746) 389 Health itself is but a kind of Temper gotten and preserved by a convenient Mixture of Contrarieties. 1734 tr. Rollin's Anc. Hist. (1827) I. 82 To keep their limbs pliable and in a right temper. 1743 Lond. & Country Brew. ii. (ed. 2) 120 The London Brewer..lets in a parcel of cold Water directly and thereby brings all his Liquor into a Temper at once. [1879 Geo. Eliot Theo. Such 117 What is temper? Its primary meaning, ‘the proportion and mode in which qualities are mingled’, is much neglected in popular speech.] |
2. Proportionate arrangement of parts; regulation, adjustment; hence, mean or medium, a middle course; a compromise; a settlement. arch.
| 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. § 4 Their most speciall temper is at the bolster, where as the plough beame lyeth. [Cf. temper v. 17.] 1597 Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxxvi. §5 A moderate, indifferent temper, betweene fulnesse of bread, and emptinesse. 1647 Jer. Taylor Lib. Proph. Ep. Ded. 24 Therefore they made Decrees of Toleration, and appointed tempers and expedients. 1692 Burnet Past. Care viii. 95 So strongly does the World love Extreams, and avoid a Temper. 1757 Burke Abridgm. Eng. Hist. iii. iv, The king..compiled a new body of laws, in order to find a temper between both. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xiii. III. 260 He would probably have preferred a temper between the two rival systems, a hierarchy in which the chief spiritual functionaries should have been something more than moderators and something less than prelates. |
3. Mental balance or composure, esp. under provocation of any kind; moderation in or command over the emotions, esp. anger; calmness, equanimity: now usually in the phrases to keep or lose (one's) temper, to be out of temper.
| 1603 Shakes. Meas. for M. ii. ii. 185 Neuer could the Strumpet..Once stir my temper. 1611 B. Jonson Catiline iv. ii, Restore your selves unto your temper, fathers, And, without perturbation, hear me speak. 1659 Hammond On Ps. civ. 9. Paraphr. 511 It observes..a temper in its madness. 1694 Congreve Double Dealer v. iv, Let your wild fury have a vent; and when you have temper, tell me. 1697 Collier Immor. Stage iii. (1698) 120 Creon keeps himself within Temper, and gives no ill Language. 1703 Rowe Ulyss. Ded., The Temper which you have restor'd to our Councils. 1711 Steele Spect. No. 140 ¶11, I keep my Temper, and win their Money. 1743 J. Morris Serm. vii. 191 The good man was out of temper. 1782 V. Knox Ess. (1819) II. lxxxvi. 148 Public affairs are seldom treated with temper either in writing or conversation. 1838 Thirlwall Greece V. xxxvii. 20 Teleutias entirely lost his temper. 1840 Dickens Barn. Rudge xxxii, It would put me out of temper, which is a state of mind I can't endure. 1871 Smiles Charac. i. (1876) 9 A weakness..was his want of temper; his genius was sacrificed to his irritability. 1878 S. Walpole Hist. Eng. II. 458 Sir Joseph Yorke told him that he would lose his place if he did not keep his temper. |
II. † 4. a. The constitution, character, or quality of a substance or body (orig. supposed to depend upon the ‘temper’ or combination of the elements); = temperament 3. Obs.
| c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurgie 332 Coold mater..ne schal not be putt awei wiþ repercussiuis, but wiþ medicyns þat ben hoot and drie in tempere. 1483 Cath. Angl. 379/2 A Tempyr..temperacio rerum. 1604 E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies iv. iii. 209 In the highest mountains and inaccessible rockes of a rough temper. 1625 N. Carpenter Geog. Del. i. iii. (1635) 45 [He] found the causes of most magneticall motions hid in the magneticall temper and constitution of the Earth. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 67 Examine the Temper of your Stuff, by easy Trials, how the Plane will work upon it. 1707 Mortimer Husb. (1721) I. 60 In sowing of Land great regard ought to be had to the Weather, and the Temper of the Land you design to sow. 1759 J. Mills Duhamel's Husb. i. ix. (1762) 52, I come now to your lands of a light temper. |
† b. Of things immaterial: Character, quality.
| 1598 B. Young tr. Montemayor's Diana 109 His strength and courage was not of such a temper, that mortall wounds could daunt his minde. 1602 Life T. Cromwell ii. i. 86 Now, sir, your heart is fram'd of milder temper. 1635 E. Pagitt Christianogr. i. iii. (1636) 125 The Georgians have.. a peculiar language of a middle temper, which well agreeth with the position of their country, betweene the Tartarians and the Armenians. 1651 Bacon Disc. Govt. Eng. ii. lxii. 194 Treason was anciently used only as a crime of breach of trust or fealty..; now it grows into a sadder temper, and is made all one with that of Laesa Majestas. |
5. The particular degree of hardness and elasticity or resiliency imparted to steel by tempering: see temper v. 14.
| c 1470 Henry Wallace ii. 189 O wareide suerd, of tempyr neuir trew. 1590 Sir J. Smyth Disc. Weapons 4 Rapier blades..made of a verie hard temper to fight in priuat fraies. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, ii. iv. 13 Between two blades, which beares the better temper. 1611 Coryat Crudities 340 Milanese Cutlers..are accounted very excellent workmen for making of kniues, targets, and swordes of a singular temper. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 61 The blew Colour gives the Temper to Springs in general. 1881 Metal World 8 Oct. 338 The temper of steel is due to the chemical union of the iron with the carbon. |
| fig. 1601 B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. (Qo.) ii. ii. 73 Not caring how the temper of your spirits [Fol. metal of your minds] Is eaten with the rust of idlenesse. 1784 Cowper Task v. 664 Harden'd his heart's temper in the forge Of lust, and on the anvil of despair. 1866 J. Martineau Ess. I. 41 Intellectual implements of more ethereal temper. |
† 6. The condition of the atmosphere with regard to heat and cold, dryness and humidity; the prevailing condition of the weather at a place; = climate n. 3, temperament 4. Obs.
| 1483 Cath. Angl. 379/2 A Tempyr,..temperies Aeris est. 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. clxvi. [clxvii.] 500 The wether was fayre and clere, and the ayre in good temper. 1604 E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies i. ix. 33 It is a land of an excellent temper, being in the midst of two extremes. 1622 Rel. Eng. Plant. in Plymouth N. Eng. in Arber Pilgr. Fathers (1897) 490 For the temper of the air here, it agreeth well with that in England. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 565 With the changeful Temper of the Skies, As Rains condense, and Sunshine rarifies. 1705 Addison Italy 208 The Temper of their Climate..relaxes the Fibers of their Bodies. |
† 7. The relative condition of a body in respect of warmth or coldness; = temperature 7. Obs.
| 1562 Turner Baths 16 Let therefore your both meat and drinke be in such temper, that they be not cold but warme. 1626 Bacon Sylva §326 This will be performed partly by the Temper of the Fire. 1657 R. Ligon Barbadoes 27 The other foure months it is not so hot, but is neer the temper of the aire in England. 1677 A. Yarranton Eng. Improv. 109 The Cloth is always kept in a constant heat and temper. 1693 E. Halley in Phil. Trans. XVII. 655 The Thermometers..in use are of Two sorts; the one shewing the differing Temper of Heat and Cold by the Expansion of Spirit of Wine, the other by the Air. 1733 Miller Gard. Dict. s.v. Tan, The Bark will begin to heat, and when it is found of a due Temper, the Plants may be removed into it. 1884 F. J. Britten Watch & Clockm. 75 Sufficient heat will pass along the wire to lower the temper of the hole. |
† 8. Bodily habit, constitution, or condition. Obs.
Sometimes attributed to the various proportions in which the four humours are combined; sometimes to the combination of physical qualities: see temperament 3, 6.
| 1599 B. Jonson Cynthia's Rev. ii. i, A creature of a most perfect and divine temper: one, in whom the humours and elements are peaceably met..he is neither too..melancholy, too..phlegmatic [etc.]. 1615 Crooke Body of Man 272 The Temper of the whole body is to be esteemed according to the Temper of the principall parts, especially of the heart and the Liuer. 1634 W. Wood New Eng. Prosp. i. ii, Agreeing well with the temper of our English bodies. 1650 [see exquisiteness d]. 1653 H. More Antid. Ath. ii. x. §7 (1712) 71 The Hare, whose temper and frame of body are plainly fitted on purpose for her Condition. 1661 Lovell Hist. Anim. & Min. Introd., As for their [serpents'] temper, some are cold, and others hot. 1707 Floyer Physic. Pulse-Watch 300 All the Climates above 45 towards the æquator have exceeding Pulses, and Choleric thin Tempers and Habits. |
9. Mental constitution; habitual disposition; = temperament 7.
| 1595 Shakes. John v. ii. 40 A noble temper dost thou shew in this. 1611 ― Wint. T. iv. iv. 478 You know my Fathers temper: at this time He will allow no speech. 1669 Stillingfl. Serm. Whitsunday ¶14 Did the being Christians alter their natural temper? 1720 Hearne Collect. (O.H.S.) VII. 111 A Lady of a sweet Temper, strict Virtue. 1754 Edwards Freed. Will i. ii. 10 The particular Temper which the Mind has by Nature, or that has been introduced and established by Education, Example, Custom or some other Means. 1777 H. Blair Serm. (1780) II. 70 Temper is the disposition which remains after these emotions are past; and which forms the habitual propensity of the soul. 1842 Borrow Bible in Spain xlviii, He..had been educated for the Church, which, not suiting his temper, he had abandoned. 1874 Green Short Hist. viii. §2. 466 The temper of the Puritan was eminently a temper of law. |
10. a. Actual state or attitude of the mind or feelings; frame of mind; inclination, humour.
| a 1628 Preston New Covt. (1634) 118 If thy heart continue in that temper, it is impossible. 1680 Burnet Rochester (1692) 62 Thereby to nourish a devout temper in us. 1719 De Foe Crusoe i. 320 He brought me an Account of the Temper he found them in. 1777 Burke Let. Sheriffs Bristol Wks. III. 162 A conciliatory temper must precede and prepare every plan of reconciliation. 1838 Lytton Leila iv. vii, The excitement, the wrath of the troops, produced the temper most fit for action. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xv. III. 501 The Commons were in no temper to listen to such excuses. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) IV. 317, I would recommend you..not to encourage yourself in this polemical and controversial temper. |
b. In good-temper, ill-temper, bad temper (the latter leading to sense 11).
| 1768 [implied in good-tempered]. 1792 A. Young Trav. France 69 A feature of that good temper which appears to me so visible every where in France. 1793 Burke Cond. Minority Wks. VII. 267 He would not be able to get the better of the ill temper, and the ill doctrines, he has been the means of exciting. 1828 Webster s.v., Disposition of mind; the constitution of the mind, particularly with regard to the passions and affections; as, a calm temper; a hasty temper; a fretful temper. This is applicable to beasts as well as to man. a 1832 Bentham Deontology (1834) I. 26 note, The tranquillity and good temper of a disputant. 1855 Bad temper [see bad a. 6]. 1884 J. Hall Chr. Home 159 Servants..sometimes suffer from the ill-temper of their employers. |
11. = ill-temper: Heat of mind or passion, showing itself by outbursts of irritation or anger upon slight provocation; explosive ill-humour.
| 1828 Webster, Temper..5. Heat of mind or passion; irritation. The boy showed a great deal of temper when I reproved him. So we say, a man of violent temper, when we speak of his irritability. (This use of the word is common, though a deviation from its original and genuine meaning.) 1836 Smart, Temper,..from the original sense, calmness, moderation; by a special application of the latter derivative senses, heat, irritation. a 1846 J. W. Croker (Worc.), Johnson, when the first ebullition of temper had subsided, felt that he had been unreasonably violent. 1880 Church Cathedral & Univ. Serm. (1892) 197 What we all understand when we speak of a man ‘showing temper’. 1900 E. Glyn Visits Elizabeth (1906) 21, I can't tell you, Mamma, what a temper I was in. |
III. 12. Concrete senses, in technical use. † a. Applied to mortar or plaster. Obs. rare—1.
| 1594 Plat Jewell-ho. i. 18 An olde wall whose temper was made of Lime and Sand. |
b. Sugar-manuf. A solution containing lime or some other alkaline substance serving to neutralize the acid in the raw cane-juice and clarify it.
| 1657 R. Ligon Barbadoes 90 A liquor made of water and Withs which they call Temper. 1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVIII. 59/1 When the clarifier is filled, a fire is lighted, and a quantity of Bristol quicklime in powder..called temper, is poured into the vessel. 1839 Ure Dict. Arts 1202 If an excess of temper be used, the gluten is taken up again by the strong affinity which..exist[s] between sugar and lime. |
c. An alloy of tin and copper.
| 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., Pewterer's Temper, an alloy of 2 parts tin and 1 copper. 1885 Encycl. Brit. XVIII. 725/1 The finest pewter (sometimes called ‘tin and temper’) is simply tin hardened by the addition of a trifle of copper. |
d. (See quot. 1975.)
| 1925 C. E. Guthe Pueblo Pottery Making 20 The mixing..consists of the addition of temper. 1936 K. M. Chapman Pottery of Santo Domingo Pueblo 11 The clay and temper are moistened and kneaded together. 1955 Bushnell & Digby Anc. Amer. Pottery iv. 32 The temper is normally rather coarse, but in at least one of the three examples..it is very fine. 1975 R. L. Beals Peasant Marketing System of Oaxaca, Mexico ii. 18 Temper used in pottery making is a coarse material such as sand or decomposed rock to make the clay more ductile and prevent cracking of the shaped vessel during drying. |
IV. 13. attrib. and Comb., as temper-fit, temper-flaw, temper tantrum; temper-spoiling, temper-wearing adjs.
| 1788 Cowper Poet's N.-Y. Gift ii, To wish thee fairer is no need,..Or more ingenious, or more freed From temper-flaws unsightly. 1884 W. James in Mind IX. 199 In injuries to the brain..we have tears, laughter, and temper-fits, on the most insignificant provocation. 1893 Outing (U.S.) XXII. 121/2 Fly-fishing is pretty, but it is a futile and temper-spoiling art on a narrow, crooked, bush-grown brook. 1895 Kipling in Daily Chron. 3 July 3/7 The mass of profitless, temper-wearing detail that attaches itself to any extended market-work. 1930 G. C. Myers Mod. Parent x. 168 There are vague symptoms of temper tantrum at the age of several weeks when [an infant's] accustomed satisfactions are withheld. 1951 Auden Nones (1952) 11 Unable To conceive a god whose temper-tantrums are moral. 1980 Jrnl. R. Soc. Med. LXXIII. 217 The affected children themselves are liable to behavioural problems such as temper tantrums. |
14. Special Comb. (perh. from stem of temper v.): temper-brittleness Metallurgy, notch-brittleness produced in certain types of steel when it is held in or cooled slowly through a certain temperature range; hence temper-brittle a.; temper-pot: see quots.; temper-screw, a set-screw for adjustment; esp. in boring, a screw-connexion for automatically adjusting the drill as the boring proceeds. See also temper-pin.
| 1918 Proc. Inst. Automobile Engin. XII. 349 If an absolutely unnotched bar is taken and tested under impact conditions, it is frequently found that even if that bar happens to show the peculiar ‘*temper brittleness’ it will bend over without any sign of brittleness in the unnotched state... There is..no difference..between the micro-structure of the ‘temper-brittle’ steel and the micro-structure of the same steel giving the good impact value. 1930 Engineering 24 Oct. 525/3 The metal had been rendered ‘temper brittle’ by being cooled too slowly in the tempering process. 1967 A. H. Cottrell Introd. Metallurgy xx. 384 This temper-brittleness..is associated with fracture along grain boundaries. |
| 1875 Ure Dict. Arts III. 67 When..the ladle becomes chilled, it is dipped into a small vessel containing lead of a higher temperature than that which is being worked, and known by the name of a *temper-pot. 1884 C. G. W. Lock Workshop Receipts Ser. iii. 361/2 The temper-pots hold about a ton of metal each. |
| a 1864 Gesner Coal, Petrol., etc. (1865) 28 The *Temper Screw is attached to a rope which connects with the end of the walking-beam, and serves to regulate the descent of the drill, without the inconvenience of lengthening the rope at short intervals. 1877 Knight Dict. Mech., Temper-screw,..one which brings its point against a bearing or an object. 1883 Century Mag. July 330/1 Then there is the ‘temper-screw’ which lowers the drilling apparatus inch by inch as it goes down. |
▪ II. temper, v.
(ˈtɛmpə(r))
Forms: 1 temprian, 3 temprien, (Orm.) temmprenn, 3–4 tempren, 3–6 tempre, (4–5 tempire, 4–6 -ere, -ir, -or, 5 -yr, -ore, 5–6 -ier), 4– temper. See also tamper v.1
[OE. temprian (so also in OS. temperon), ad. L. temperāre to divide or proportion duly, to mingle in due proportion, to combine properly; to qualify, temper; to arrange or keep in due measure or proportion, to keep within limits, to regulate, rule. Thence OF. temprer (12th c.), later (tremprer) tremper, 13th c. in Godef. (whence tramp v.2 to soak); also tempérer (learned form after L.) to moderate by some mixture. The sense-development of the Eng. verb. was prob. influenced by the French. A differentiated form is tamper v.1
L. temperāre is generally held to be a deriv. of tempus, tempor- a time or season, the proper time or season; but the sense history of both words is prehistoric and obscure: see Walde Lat. Etymol.]
I. 1. trans. To bring (anything) to a proper or suitable condition, state, or quality, by mingling with something else; to qualify, alloy, or dilute by such mixture or combination. Also fig. arch.
| a 1000 Blickl. Glosses Ps. ci. 10 Potum meum cum fletu temperabam, glossed ic temprede. 13.. K. Alis. 7850 Venym he tok, and tempred hit with wyn. 1382 Wyclif 1 Cor. xii. 24 But god tempride the bodi [Vulg. Deus temperavit corpus], ȝyuynge more worschipe to it, to whom it failide. c 1425 tr. Arderne's Surgery (E.E.T.S.) 72 Þe ȝolk of a raw ey tempered with bole armoniac to sich þikknes þat it may by a clistery be ȝette into þe lure. 1486 Bk. St. Albans b vj b, Take Oyle of spayne and tempere it with clere wyne. 1544 T. Phaer Pestilence (1553) Mv, In a hote season it is good to temper y⊇ said wine with a litle rose⁓water. a 1591 H. Smith Serm. (1637) 134 As wine is tempered with water, so let discretion temper zeale. 1660 Burney κέρδ. Δῶρον (1661) 110 To compound an absolute one (Temperamentum ad pondus) of the other 3 forms of Government [Spartan, Athenian, Roman], as the ingredients, and..tampering with Monarchy. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 106 ¶3 The good old Knight..tempered the Inquiries after his own Affairs with several kind Questions relating to themselves. 1756 Nugent Montesquieu's Spir. Laws (1758) I. iv. viii. 55 There was a necessity for tempering them with others that might soften their manners. |
2. a. To modify (some unsuitable or excessive state or quality, or some thing or person in respect of such), esp. by admixture of some other quality, etc.; to reduce to the suitable or desirable (middle) degree or condition free from excess in either direction; to moderate, mitigate, assuage, tone down.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. II. 46 And eft ᵹetemprie seo bile⁓witnys þæt fyr, þæt hit to reðe ne sy. a 1050 Liber Scintill. x. 52 Bryne lichamena mid cealdrum estum to tempriᵹenne ys [L. temperandus est]. c 1200 Ormin 2893 Forr aȝȝ birrþ rihhtwisnesse ben Þurrh mildheorrtnesse temmpredd. a 1340 Hampole Psalter cvi. 29 Þe persecuciouns he tempird and made þaim suffrabil. 1552 Huloet, Temper sorow with mirth. 1596 Spenser State Irel. Pref. 2 We may wish that in some passages it had bin tempered with more moderation. 1596 Bacon Max. & Use Com. Law Ep. Ded. (1636) 3 Kings which..do temper their magnanimity with justice. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ. (1778) II. 176 (Maria) God tempers the wind, said Maria, to the shorn lamb. 1781 J. Moore View Soc. It. (1790) I. xxxix. 420 Our admiration of the Romans is tempered with horror. 1834 M. Somerville Connex. Phys. Sc. xxvi. (1849) 291 The cold currents from the poles tempering the intense heat of the equatorial regions. 1871 Macduff Mem. Patmos x. 132 He..who tempers judgment with mercy. 1878 Huxley Physiogr. 80 In tempering the activity of the oxygen with which it is associated. |
b. intr. (for pass.)
| 1860 Dickens Uncomm. Trav. ix, A flavour of damaged oranges, which, a little further down towards the river, tempered into herrings, and gradually toned into a cosmopolitan blast of fish. |
3. To mix, mingle, blend (ingredients) together, or (one ingredient) with another, in proper proportions. Also fig. arch.
| c 1386 Chaucer Can. Yeom. Prol. & T. 348 Er þat the pot be on the fir ydo Of metals with a certeyn quantitee My lord hem tempreth and no man but he. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 488/1 Temperyn, or menge to-gedur, commisceo, misceo. 1530 Palsgr. 754/1 Whan metalles be well tempered togyther they wyll be all as one. 1671 J. Webster Metallogr. v. 88 They are said to grow of sulphur and argent vive mixt and tempered together. 1759 J. Mills Duhamel's Husb. i. viii. (1762) 21 To fling and temper amongst it ashes or chalk. 1876 Blackie Songs Relig. & Life 195 If wisely you temper, and skilfully blend The hard-headed Scot with the quick-witted Grecian. |
4. To prepare by mingling; to make by due mixture or combination; to concoct, compound, compose, make up, devise. lit. and fig. Obs. or arch.
| 1390 Gower Conf. III. 10 In cold I brenne and frese in hete: And thanne I drinke a biter swete With dreie lippe and yhen wete. Lo, thus I tempre mi diete. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 195 He wrote..to Pausanias his physician that he should..tempre drynkes and medecines for hym. a 1569 A. Kingsmill Man's Est. ix. (1580) 44 But there is a strong medicine a temperyng. 1600 Holland Livy viii. xviii. 294 That certain dames of Rome..boiled and tempered ranke poisons (to kill their husbands). 1650 Bulwer Anthropomet. 155 Sometimes they will temper a certain Colour, with Hens dung and Saffron. |
† 5. To restore the proper ‘temper’ or ‘temperament’ to; to bring into a good or desirable state of body or health; to cure, heal, refresh.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. I. 474 Se ðe wile mid soðum læce⁓cræfte his lichaman ᵹetemprian, swa swa dyde se witeᵹa Isaias. c 1430 Lydg. Min. Poems (Percy Soc.) 196 Ayer of nature yevith inspiracioun..To tempre the spiritis by vertu vegetatiff. 1486 Bk. St. Albans b ij b, Bot it tempur yowre hawke, that is to say ensayme yowre hawke with in .iiij. days, I meruell. 1561 Hollybush Hom. Apoth. 44 b, He may drinke a litle wyne vpon it, to tempere hys mouth of the bitternesse. 1613 Purchas Pilgrimage iii. xvii. 284 Gallus, a riuer..the waters whereof, temperatly drunken, did exceedingly temper the braine, and take away madnes. |
6. To bring into a suitable or desirable frame of mind; to dispose favourably, to persuade; also, to appease, mollify, pacify. Obs. or arch.
| 1525 Ld. Berners Froiss. II. xci. [lxxxvii.] 271 If he be nat reasonable, the duke of Berrey and the duke of Burgoyne wyll so temper hym, that ye shal be frendes and cosyn to the kynge. 1546 St. Papers Hen. VIII, XI. 44 How moch the Emperour hath doone soo to tempre the French King, it appered in his last bargayn with Fraunce. 1588 Shakes. Tit. A. iv. iv. 109 Now will I to that old Andronicus, And temper him with all the Art I haue, To plucke proud Lucius from the warlike Gothes. 1678 Temple Let. to Sir L. Jenkins Wks. 1731 II. 470, I found both the King and the Duke growing so angry upon it, that I thought it my part to temper them as far as I could. 1710 Steele Tatler No. 194 ¶7 The Lady so well tempered and reconciled them both, that she forced them to join Hands. 1874 Bushnell Forgiven. & Law 59 Is it true that God must be gained or tempered transactionally..in order to the letting forth of grace upon his enemies? |
II. 7. To keep, conduct, or manage in just measure; to regulate; to control, direct, guide, rule, govern, overrule. Obs. exc. dial.
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. III. 250 Ac heo [seo sunne] temprað ða eorðlican wæstmas æᵹðer ᵹe on wæstme ᵹe on ripunge. 13.. Coer de L. 659 Kyng Rychard the fyre bet, Thomas to the spytte hym set, Fouk Doyly tempryd the wood. a 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 7616 Þai [the heavens] tempre þe streng[t]he of alle þe elementes. c 1400 Gower Praise of Peace 160 Though thou the werres darst wel undirtake, Aftir reson yit tempre thi corage. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 488/1 Temporyn, or sette yn mesure, tempero. 1528 Tindale Obed. Chr. Man 148 b, All the Apostles chose two..and cast lottes desyringe God to temper them that the lotte myght fall on the most ablest. 1576 Gosson Spec. Hum. vi. in Sch. Abuse (Arb.) 77 Thou God..that..turnes the spheares, and tempers all on hie. 1591 Spenser M. Hubberd 1294 His snakie wand, With which the damned ghosts he governeth, And furies rules and Tartare tempereth. 1659 J. Leak Waterwks. 32 There is a Pipe with a Cock..which serves to temper the course of the Water. 1725 Pope Odyss. iv. 326 Supremest Jove Tempers the fates of human race above. 1835 D. Webster Orig. Scot. Rhymes 152 (E.D.D.) This birkie bodie can wi' speed Temper yer ilka thrum and thread. |
8. a. To restrain within due limits, or within the bounds of moderation; in later use often simply, to restrain, check, curb.
| a 1050 Liber Scintill. xxviii. (1889) 107 Forþi hi na tempredon [L. non temperauerunt] ᵹefernysse hætan. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 1624 He dude hom ssame ynou & temprede hom vol wel & made hom sone milde ynou þo hii were rebel. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 775 Ȝif þou tynez þat toun, tempre þyn yre. c 1394 P. Pl. Crede 743 To toilen wiþ þe erþe, Tylen & trewliche lyven & her flech tempren. c 1400 Brut 31 Lud his sone..gouernede wel þe lande, and miche honourrede gode folc, and temprede and amendit wickede folc. 1538 Starkey England i. iv. 120 Yf we coude fynd a way to tempur and refrayne thayr malyce. 1599 Warn. Faire Wom. ii. 737 Learne to temper your excessive griefe. 1777 Robertson Hist. Amer. II. v. 81 Cortes..was more solicitous to temper than to inflame their ardour. 1821 Byron Sardan. i. ii. 347 Since they are tumultuous, Let them be temper'd, yet not roughly. |
† b. refl. To control or restrain oneself. Obs.
| c 1000 ælfric Hom. I. 360 An is, þæt ᵹehwa hine sylfne ᵹetempriᵹe mid ᵹemete on æte and on wæte. 13.. Cursor M. 17244 (Cott.) For-sak þi serc o silk and line, And temper þe wit[h] alle and wine. 1531 Elyot Gov. iii. xxiv. (1883) 379 He coulde nat tempre him selfe in redyng Greke bokes whyles the Senate was sittyng. 1600 Holland Livy v. xlv. 209 So as they could scarcely temper themselves and forbeare, but presently set upon them. 1651 Hobbes Govt. & Soc. vii. §4. 114, I wish that not onely Kings, but all other Persons..would so temper themselves as to commit no wrong. |
† c. refl. To restrain oneself or refrain from († of).
| 1560 J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 100 b, Warnyng men to tempre themselues from entryng in to wycked warres. 1561 T. Norton Calvin's Inst. i. 42 If the readers will temper them of curiositie, and not more gredily than mete is, seke for combersome and entangled disputations. 1658 W. Burton Itin. Anton. 180, I could not temper my self..from causing his discourse to be transcribed hither. |
9. To regulate suitably to need or requirement; to fit, adapt, conform, accommodate, make suitable. Const. to. Now rare or Obs.
| 1450–1530 Myrr. our Ladye 86 The sufferaunce of god, whyche temperyth all thynges to hys seruauntes, as they may bere to theyr mooste profyt. 1573–80 Baret Alv. T 113 To Temper his talke to the fantasie and pleasure. 1649 Milton Eikon. i. 5 They were indeed not temper'd to his temper. 1662 Stillingfl. Orig. Sacr. ii. v. §8 God tempered the Ceremoniall Law much according to the condition and capacity of the persons it was prescribed to. 1665 Manley Grotius' Low C. Warres 243 If the one King..had tempered himself and his Laws, according to the strength and prevalence of parties. |
III. Various technical uses.
10. To bring (clay, mortar, etc.) to a proper consistence for use by mixing and working it up with water, etc. Also fig.
| 13.. Cursor M. 22940 (Fairf.) Þe potter..al new he tempris his clay. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 271 Whan þat stoon is i-tempred wiþ water and torned to playstre. c 1400 Brut 57 Wille ȝe slee me for my blode forto temper wiþ ȝoure morter? 1535 Coverdale Ecclus. xxxviii. 30 He fashioneth the claye with his arme, and with his fete he tempereth it. 1617 Moryson Itin. i. 32 Lime tempered, not with water, but with wine, incredibly durable. 1719 Young Busiris v. i, Yes, I will..temper all my cement with their blood. 1884 C. T. Davis Manuf. Bricks, etc. v. (1889) 130 The object of tempering the clay is to thoroughly mix it, and prepare the material for the use of the moulder. |
† 11. a. To moisten (a substance, usually medicinal or culinary ingredients in a comminuted state) so as to form a paste or mixture; to mix to a paste.
| c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xxi. 94 Take þe lefes..and stampe þam and tempre þam with water and drink it. c 1400 Rom. Rose 4180 A plastre dolorous..Which is not tempred with vynegre, But with poverte & indigence. c 1440 Anc. Cookery in Househ. Ord. (1790) 426 Take soden porke and grynde hit smal, and tempur hit with rawe yolkes of eyren. 1563 T. Gale Antidot. ii. 15 The herbes must be mixed and tempered with Axungia. 1668 Culpepper & Cole Barthol. Anat. i. ix. 22 Some moisture to temper the meat and make it liquid. 1674 Ray Collect. Words, Smelting Silver 115 With water tempered into a past to a due quality. |
b. spec. in Painting: To prepare (colours) for use by mixing them with oil, etc.
| 1531 Elyot Gov. iii. xix. (1883) 318 In temperynge his colours, he lacked good size, wherwith they shulde have ben bounden, and made to endure. 1691 Ray Creation i. (1692) 97 The most skilful Painter cannot so mingle and temper his Colours. 1837 Sir F. Palgrave Merch. & Friar (1844) 9 The metallic or body colours are to be tempered or mixed with oil. 1859 Sala Gaslight & D. ii. 25 Colours..ground in water, and subsequently tempered with size. |
† 12. To steep or dissolve (a substance) in a liquid (cf. tramp v.2); fig. to drench, suffuse. Obs.
| c 1489 Caxton Blanchardyn 147 Wyth eyen all tempred wyth teerys. 1530 Palsgr. 754/1, I temper, I laye breed or other thynges in stepe... You muste temper your breed in vynayger. 1600 Holland Livy xxx. xv. 750 Which [poison] hee commaunded him to temper in a goblet of wine, and to carie it to Sophonisba. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. vii. xxxiv. 50 Take blew Smalts, temper it in Water, and rub the Picture with it. |
† 13. trans. To soften (iron, wax, etc.) by heating; to melt. Also intr. for pass. Obs.
| 1535 Coverdale Isa. xliv. 12 The smyth taketh yron, and tempreth it with hote coles, and fashioneth it with hammers. 1590 Sir J. Smyth Disc. Weapons 19 b, The Archers did vse to temper with fire a conuenient quantitie of waxe, rosen, and fine tallowe together. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iv. iii. 140, I haue him alreadie tempering betweene my finger and my thombe, and shortly will I seale with him. |
14. a. To bring (steel) to a suitable degree of hardness and elasticity or resiliency by heating it to the required temperature and immersing it, while hot, in some liquid, usually cold water; applied also to the hardening of copper, etc. Also fig.
| c 1381 Chaucer Parl. Foules 214, I say Cupide..hise arwis forge & file..And wel his doughtyr temperede al this whyle The heuedis in the welle. 14.. Tundale's Vis. 1059 As men shulde temper irne or stele. 1530 Palsgr. 754/1 They have a great advauntage in Spayne, to temper their blades well, bycause of the nature of their ryvers. 1603 Holland Plutarch's Mor. 115 We must doe as the Smithes who temper yron: For when they have given it a fire, and made it by that meanes soft, loose and pliable, they drench and dip it in cold water, whereby it becommeth compact and hard, taking thereby the due temperature of stiffe steele. 1758 Reid tr. Macquer's Chym. I. 64 The hardness of Steel may be considerably augmented by tempering it; that is, by making it red-hot, and suddenly quenching it in some cold liquor. 1881 Metal World No. 8. 121 This they converted into the purest steel, and tempered to the hardest and yet the most elastic pitch. |
b. intr. (for pass.).
| 1881 Raymond Mining Gloss. s.v., A metallic compound in which these qualities [hardness and elasticity] can thus be produced is said to temper, or to take temper. 1884 W. H. Greenwood Steel & Iron xvii. §669 Mild steel containing from 0·05 to 0·20 per cent. of carbon will weld, but does not temper. |
c. trans. To reduce the brittleness in (hardened steel) by reheating it to a certain temperature and allowing it to cool. Cf. anneal v. 4.
| 1925 Jrnl. Iron & Steel Inst. CXI. 334 Careful observations made on specimens which had been tempered just below 200°C. 1967 A. H. Cottrell Introd. Metallurgy xx. 384 If plain carbon or low-alloy steels are tempered below about 250°C they usually remain somewhat brittle. |
† 15. a. To tune, adjust the pitch of (a musical instrument). Obs. exc. as in b.
| c 1300 Prov. Hending x. in Salomon & Sat., etc. (1848) 272 He nul no gle bygynne er he haue tempred is pype. 1390 Gower Conf. III. 301 He takth the Harpe and in his wise He tempreth, and of such assise Singende he harpeth forth withal. 1575 Laneham Let. (1871) 41 For fyling his napkin, temperd a string or too with his wreast. 1593 Bacchus Bountie in Harl. Misc. (Malh.) II. 274 Whereupon M. Barlycap tempered up his fiddle, and began. |
b. spec. To tune (a note or instrument) according to some temperament: see temperament 10. See also tempered 1 e.
| 1727–41 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Temperament, To mend these imperfect concords, the musicians have bethought themselves to temper, i.e. give them part of the agreeableness of perfect ones... All such divisions of the octave are called tempered, or temperative systems. 1788 Cavallo in Phil. Trans. LXXVIII. 250 All the fifths, all the thirds, and in short all the chords of the same denomination, are equally tempered throughout. 1875 A. J. Ellis tr. Helmholtz' Sensat. Tone iii. xvi. 509 It is clearly not necessary to temper the instruments to which the singer practises. |
16. To bring into harmony, attune. Const. to. Obs. or arch.
| c 1374 Chaucer Boeth. iii. met. xii. 84 (Camb. MS.) And there he [Orpheus] temprede hise blaundysshynge soonges by resownynge strenges. 1637 Milton Lycidas 33 Mean while the Rural ditties were not mute, Temper'd to th' Oaten Flute. 1754 Gray Progr. Poesy 26 Thee the voice, the dance, obey, Temper'd to thy warbled lay. 1860 J. W. Warter Sea-board II. 367 If we make melody in our hearts, and if our souls are tempered to harmony, then is the Divinity enlarged within us. |
17. To set or adjust the share and other parts of (a plough) in the proper position for making the furrow of the required depth and width. ? Obs.
| 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §4 It is necessarye for an housbande to knowe howe these plowes shulde be tempered, to plowe and turne clene, and to make no reste balkes. Ibid., All these maner of plowes shulde haue all lyke one maner of temperyng in the yrens. 1844 Stephens Bk. Farm I. 33 The ploughman will be able to afford him ocular proof how he places (tempers) all the irons of the plough in relation to the state of the land. Ibid. 404 To ‘temper a plough’ is the great aim of the good ploughman. |
† 18. To regulate (a clock). Sc. Obs.
| 1538 Aberdeen Regr. (1844) I. 157 For his gud seruice to be done in keiping and temporing of thair knok within the tolbutht, for his fee. 1592–3 in Spottiswoode Misc. (1845) II. 269 Wnderstanding the great pains and travels of Archibald Stedman in tempering the knock. |
19. To increase the pliability of straw for corn-dolly making by dampening it with water.
| 1963 M. Lambeth Golden Dolly 11 When plaiting out of season it is necessary to temper the straw. 1976 S. J. Reid Art of Weaving Corn Dollies 9 After a period of storage.., straw dries out... To restore it to a supple condition it is necessary to temper (or dampen) the straw. |
▪ III. temper
obs. var. tamper v.; obs. f. tempter; var. tempre a. Obs.