temper

tem|per1 [ `tempər ] noun **

1. ) count or uncount a tendency to get angry very quickly:

That temper of yours is going to get you into trouble.

She should never have married a man with such a violent temper.

have a short temper (=become angry very quickly): He's not a bad boss, but he has a short temper.

control your temper: Andrew has not yet learned to control his temper.

tempers flare (=people get angry): Tempers flared and things began to get out of control.

tempers fray (=people start to get angry): It was a difficult meeting and tempers got a bit frayed.

2. ) singular or uncount a particular emotional state or mood:

in a bad/foul/terrible etc. temper: When Mark turned up he was in a foul temper.

in a good temper: He seems to be in a good temper.

a ) an extremely angry state:

be in a temper: He doesn't mean what he says when he's in a temper.

get/fly into a temper: When she refused to help, he flew into a temper.

a fit of temper (=a sudden short period of uncontrolled anger): He stormed out of the room in a fit of temper.

a temper tantrum (=a sudden short period of uncontrolled anger): As a small child he had had violent temper tantrums.

keep your temper (with)

to stay calm and not get angry:

It's important to keep your temper with the children.

lose your temper (with)

to become very angry:

She hardly ever lost her temper.

temper, temper SPOKEN

used for telling someone to stop being angry in an unreasonable way

temper

tem|per 2 [ `tempər ] verb transitive

1. ) to make steel hard by heating it and then making it cold

2. ) FORMAL to make something less strong or extreme, especially by adding something that has the opposite effect:

hot, sunny days tempered by a light breeze

The time had come to temper idealism with reality.