Which term means to reduce the severity of something?

• A. Exacerbate
• B. Magnify
• C. Alleviate
• D. Diminish

Answer: (C)

Reducing the severity of something means bringing down its intensity or impact, especially pain, symptoms, or distress. The best term here is alleviate, which means to ease or relieve such discomfort.

Exacerbate would do the opposite, making the problem worse. Magnify means to make something larger or more exaggerated. Diminish means to reduce in amount or degree, which is close in idea but doesn’t specifically convey relief from distress as clearly as alleviate. For example, you can alleviate pain, making it feel less severe.