Militate

• POS: Verb (intransitive)
• HYPHEN: mil=i=tate

CIDE DICTIONARY

Militate, v. i. [L. militare, militatum, to be a soldier, fr. miles, militis, soldier.].

 To make war; to fight; to contend; -- usually followed by against and with.  [1913 Webster]
"These are great questions, where great names militate against each other."  [1913 Webster]
"The invisible powers of heaven seemed to militate on the side of the pious emperor."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Militate, v.intr. (usu. foll. by against) (of facts or evidence) have force or effect (what you say militates against our opinion).

Usage

Often confused with mitigate.

Etymology

L militare militat- f. miles militis soldier

THESAURUS

Militate

act, aid, be effective, be in action, cancel out, count, counter, countervail, discourage, favor, foil, function, further, go, have effect, have free play, have play, help, hinder, militate against, operate, oppose, percolate, perform, perk, play, prevent, promote, resist, run, take effect, tell, tick, work