distemperate

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adjective

Immoderate, excessive.

“Thou hast thy brain distemperate, and out of rule.”

OriginMiddle English distemperat(e) ← Medieval Latin distemperātus →
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Meanings

adjectivedistemperate (comparative more distemperate, superlative most distemperate)

comparative more distemperate · superlative most distemperate

  1. obsoleteImmoderate, excessive.

    Thou hast thy brain distemperate, and out of rule.

  2. obsoleteair or elementsNot temperate, of no good influence for one's confort or soundness; (figuratively) unwholesome, stormy.
  3. obsoleteNot properly tempered; disordered through excess or deficiency of some constituent; (by extensions, of bodily or mental condition) disordered, out of order; diseased, out of health; ill-conditioned.

Origin

  1. Medieval Latindistemperātus
  2. Middle Englishdistemperat(e)
  3. Englishdistemperate

First attested in 1398, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English distemperat(e), borrowed from Medieval Latin distemperātus (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from dis- + temperātus, perfect passive participle of temperō (“to temperate oneself, show restraint”).

More words from Middle English, Medieval Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

distemperate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/distemperate

MLA

“distemperate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/distemperate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “distemperate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/distemperate.

Source: distemperate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.