anodyne

UK: /ˈænədaɪn/ US: /ˈænəˌdaɪn/ ,(an′ə dīn′)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

an•o•dyne /ˈænəˌdaɪn/   n. 

[countable]
1. anything that relieves pain or distress:
   Work on the book was the anodyne that took his mind off his grief.

adj. 

2. relieving pain or discomfort;
   soothing:
   the anodyne effect of watching ocean waves.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

an•o•dyne  (an′ə dīn′), n. 

1. Drugs a medicine that relieves or allays pain.
2. anything that relieves distress or pain:
   The music was an anodyne to his grief.

adj. 

3. relieving pain.
4. soothing to the mind or feelings.

• Greek anó̄dynos painless, equivalent. to an- an-¹ + ōdyn- (stem of odýnē pain, with lengthening of o) + -os adjective, adjectival suffix
• Latin anōdynus
• 1535–45;

an•o•dyn•ic  (an′ə din′ik), adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

anodyne / ˈænəˌdaɪn/ noun

1. a drug that relieves pain; analgesic
2. anything that alleviates mental distress

adjective

1. capable of relieving pain or distress

Etymology: 16th Century: from Latin anōdynus, from Greek anōdunos painless, from an- + odunē pain