mod·u·late

[moj-uh-leyt] verb, mod·u·lat·ed, mod·u·lat·ing.
verb (used with object)
1.
to regulate by or adjust to a certain measure or proportion; soften; tone down.
2.
to alter or adapt (the voice) according to the circumstances, one's listener, etc.
3.
Music.
a.
to attune to a certain pitch or key.
b.
to vary the volume of (tone).
4.
Telecommunications. to cause the amplitude, frequency, phase, or intensity of (a carrier wave) to vary in accordance with a sound wave or other signal, the frequency of the signal wave usually being very much lower than that of the carrier.
verb (used without object)
5.
Telecommunications.
a.
to modulate a carrier wave.
b.
Citizens Band Radio Slang. to talk; visit: Enjoyed modulating with you.
6.
Music. to pass from one key to another: to modulate abruptly from A to B flat.
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Modulate is a GRE word you need to know.
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mournful, dismal, or gloomy, esp. in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner:
willing to sell one's influence in return for a bribe
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Origin:
1550–60; < Latin modulātus (past participle of modulārī to regulate (sounds), set to music, play an instrument). See module, -ate1

Related forms
mod·u·la·bil·i·ty [moj-uh-luh-bil-i-tee] , noun
mod·u·la·tive, mod·u·la·to·ry [moj-uh-luh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] , adjective
re·mod·u·late, verb (used with object), re·mod·u·lat·ed, re·mod·u·lat·ing.
un·mod·u·lat·ed, adjective
un·mod·u·la·tive, adjective
well-mod·u·lat·ed, adjective

Synonyms
2. temper, control.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
modulate (ˈmɒdjʊˌleɪt) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—vb
1.  (tr) to change the tone, pitch, or volume of
2.  (tr) to adjust or regulate the degree of
3.  music
 a.  to subject to or undergo modulation in music
 b.  (often foll by to) to make or become in tune (with a pitch, key, etc)
4.  (tr) physics, electronics to cause to vary by a process of modulation
 
[C16: from Latin modulātus in due measure, melodious, from modulārī to regulate, from modus measure]
 
modulability
 
—n
 
'modulative
 
—adj
 
'modulatory
 
—adj
 
'modulator
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

modulate
1610s, in music, from L. modulat-, pp. stem of modulari (see modulation). In telecommunications from 1908. Related: Modulated; modulating.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Science Dictionary
modulate   (mŏj'ə-lāt')  Pronunciation Key 
To vary the amplitude, frequency, or some other characteristic of a signal or power source. See also amplitude modulation, frequency modulation.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary

modulate definition


  1. n.
    to relax; to chill. : Cool it man. Modulate. Relax.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
As they try to modulate the market, local and central governments here are
  walking a thin line.
Liquid crystal diodes do not emit light, they merely modulate either
  transmitted or reflected light.
She hypothesized that the electrodes might modulate the area and ease the
  depression.
The capacity to modulate and verbalize anger in constructive ways has failed to
  develop in people who are violent.
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