From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpalliativepal‧li‧a‧tive /ˈpæliətɪv $ -ətɪv, -eɪtɪv/ noun [countable] 1 BETTER formal something done to make a bad situation seem better, but which does not solve the problem short-term economic palliatives2 MH medical a medical treatment that will not cure an illness but will reduce the pain —palliative adjective [usually before noun] palliative care
Examples from the Corpus
palliative• Promises of reform are mere palliatives.• It was the primary purpose of reorganisation to recast local government in a way which would make such palliatives unnecessary.• There is a need for a number of immediate short-term palliatives, as well as for a radical and bold long-term solution.• I am not referring to adhoc arrangements or short-term palliatives.• Official moves to alleviate the worst conditions were little more than palliatives.• These very palliatives, however, had also removed the stimulants to technical progress. 