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Original poster

Please settle an argument between me and DP..... what does 'mild' mean?

448 replies

Limth · 15/11/2023 12:34

You may be preventing a fucking divorce here, so please help by answering this question -

Question: If I said "It's milder today than it was yesterday", would you take that to mean:
A: Its warmer than it was yesterday
B: Its colder than yesterday

Very many thanks!

OP posts:
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7
PumpkinFence · 15/11/2023 14:29

A milder.
Have you totted up the responses on this thread for him?? Or would he seem is all womenfolk and don’t count?

LylaLee · 15/11/2023 14:29

Geminijes · 15/11/2023 14:27

I have a similar argument with a friend.

She uses milder in the summer when it’s a cooler day than the previous day, she will say it’s milder today.

Also, in winter when it’s a warmer day than the previous day, again, she will say it’s milder.

Her logic is that milder means not as harsh or severe so technically she’s correct.

Edited

Your friend is correct.

E.g. when travelling to very hot countries, you will be told 'the weather is milder between May and September' . Why do you think that's incorrect?

Josette77 · 15/11/2023 14:32

OP I am annoyed just reading this. Raging a little even.

He is indeed a fucknugget. Divorce is the only way to go.

Is he reading this thread? Is he getting it confused with spicy and mild? The weather isn't salsa.

LylaLee · 15/11/2023 14:34

TotalOverhaul · 15/11/2023 14:29

No. I teach English at one of the top universities in the world and mentor senior English lecturers in another world class university. I understand what mild and milder mean. But I did take the comment to be referring to current weather.

Edited
Show quote history

Even experts have blind spots. I'm on an app and I can't ctrl+f to find your previous post, so I can't remember exactly what you said, but mild weather means 'less harsh/extreme'.

Maybe it's dialect specific, the way Americans use 'quite' to mean 'very' whereas for Brits it means 'only a little bit'.

mindutopia · 15/11/2023 14:36

I would say it's context specific - so means, less wild/extreme. In the summer, it's milder today, means it's cooler than it was yesterday. In the winter, it means it's warmer than yesterday. So more 'average'.

WellWellSaidTheRockingChair · 15/11/2023 14:37

It can technically mean either, but most would mean warmer.

Dependabledentures · 15/11/2023 14:38

It means it's more middling than day before so if it was cold before I mean warmer and if ifs hot before I mean cold

Miyagi99 · 15/11/2023 14:39

Warmer

FraiseRoyale · 15/11/2023 14:39

Some of the definitions being cited have definitely been written by people who live in colder climates.

Where I live, "mild" weather is more of an absolute, based on a range of temperatures. In the summer, normal temps can get to over 100 F. Milder weather in the summer would be cooler, lower than 86-87 F.

Relaxd · 15/11/2023 14:40

Mild means warm so it depends on the context and the actual weather ‘yesterday’. If it was 40 degrees then milder might well mean colder. Generally I’d say it means a bit warmer after a cold day though.

febbabies2023 · 15/11/2023 14:42

BillStickersWillBeProsocuted · 15/11/2023 12:40

It would depend on the weather yesterday

If yesterday was freezing it means it's warmer, if yesterday was a scorcher it means it's cooler

YES

When I read the question I thought to myself that I use it for both so...

PickAChew · 15/11/2023 14:43

LylaLee · 15/11/2023 13:24

Maybe you're just one of those people who use words wrongly. Like saying 'pacific' when they mean 'specific'.

Show quote history

Weird of you to single out one of many like minded posters in such an unpleasant manner.

Merrymouse · 15/11/2023 14:43

Less extreme. Not too hot or too cold.

twined · 15/11/2023 14:43

mindutopia · 15/11/2023 14:36

I would say it's context specific - so means, less wild/extreme. In the summer, it's milder today, means it's cooler than it was yesterday. In the winter, it means it's warmer than yesterday. So more 'average'.

This.

Thing about the opposite of mild in this context. Harsh.

It’s less harsh than it was yesterday. A mild winter does not mean a cold winter.

CellophaneFlower · 15/11/2023 14:43

Relaxd · 15/11/2023 14:40

Mild means warm so it depends on the context and the actual weather ‘yesterday’. If it was 40 degrees then milder might well mean colder. Generally I’d say it means a bit warmer after a cold day though.

If mild meant warm, it wouldn't depend on the context, as it would mean well, warm! Mild means not extreme/severe, therefore it does depend on the context.

Original poster
Limth · 15/11/2023 14:44

Geminijes · 15/11/2023 14:27

I have a similar argument with a friend.

She uses milder in the summer when it’s a cooler day than the previous day, she will say it’s milder today.

Also, in winter when it’s a warmer day than the previous day, again, she will say it’s milder.

Her logic is that milder means not as harsh or severe so technically she’s correct.

Edited

When I've finalised the divorce from DP, shall we set them up on a date?

OP posts:
Original poster
Limth · 15/11/2023 14:45

user1483387154 · 15/11/2023 14:14

with temperature... warmer
with spices...very few
with cheese....not so strong
personal life ... not going there ;)

We're definitely talking about the weather context! 😅

OP posts:
Abbyant · 15/11/2023 14:45

Warmer

MissBridgetJones · 15/11/2023 14:45

In the summer, milder would mean cooler. 'Thank goodness today was milder than yesterday, I was sweating my tits off'

In winter, warmer. 'Pleased to have a few milder days after that snowfall last week'

Itsbritneybitch22 · 15/11/2023 14:45

Warmer …

Original poster
Limth · 15/11/2023 14:46

Flyingalone · 15/11/2023 13:51

'His family are insane'

What? Every single one of them? Is he the only one who happened to be normal?

Basically, yes.

But I make no claims for the normalness of my DP... look at his use of the word "milder" as a case in point 😅

OP posts:
Pootle40 · 15/11/2023 14:46

MonsteraMama · 15/11/2023 12:38

Ok so technically it just means "less harsh" so it could be both depending on whether it was very hot or very cold. So technically, neither are wrong.

However when referring to weather it's almost always used to mean warmer.

This. Even if it was boiling hot yesterday and more pleasant today you wouldn't say it's milder, you'd say it was cooler, more pleasant, more bearable.

Milder 99 times out of 100 means it's a bit warmer than it was yesterday.

MissBridgetJones · 15/11/2023 14:47

BillStickersWillBeProsocuted · 15/11/2023 12:40

It would depend on the weather yesterday

If yesterday was freezing it means it's warmer, if yesterday was a scorcher it means it's cooler

Exactly

Fionaville · 15/11/2023 14:48

Definitely warmer.
It's milder i.e it's not causing you discomfort.

PixiKitKat · 15/11/2023 14:49

I take it as either, depends on the temp the day before