From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtempertem‧per1 /ˈtempə $ -ər/ ●●○ noun 1 [countable, uncountable]BAD AT a tendency to become angry suddenly or easily That temper of hers will get her into trouble one of these days. According to Nathan, Robin has quite a temper. Theo needs to learn to control his temper.quick/bad/fiery etc temper Be careful, he’s got a pretty violent temper.tempers flare (also tempers become frayed British English) (=people become angry) Mason’s temper flared when he spotted his girlfriend kissing another man.2 → lose your temper3 [singular, uncountable]ANGRY the way you are feeling at a particular time, especially when you are feeling angry for a short timein a temper It’s no use talking to him when he’s in a temper. Pete hit his brother in a fit of temper.be in a bad/foul temper (=to be angry) Watch out – she’s been in a foul temper all day.fly into a temper Her boss would fly into a temper if a project wasn’t done on time.4 → keep your temper5 → good-tempered/foul-tempered/quick-tempered etc6 [singular] formalATTITUDE the general attitude that people have in a particular place at one timetemper of the temper of life in Renaissance Italy → bad-tempered, even-tempered, ill-temperedCOLLOCATIONS – Meanings 1,2, 3 & 4adjectivesa quick/short temper (=likely to get angry very easily)He’s got a quick temper, which gets him into trouble.a bad/terrible/nasty temperHe ran back home in a terrible temper.a fiery/violent/explosive temper (=likely to get angry and violent very quickly)Over the years, my sister has learned to control her fiery temper.verbshave a temperGrandad had quite a temper, so we usually tried to keep out of his way.be in a temperShe banged doors and screamed at her mother when she was in a temper.control/keep your temperShe tried to speak calmly and control her temper.lose your temper (=become angry)It was hot and I was beginning to lose my temper.fly into a temper (=suddenly become very angry)He flew into a temper at the slightest thing.somebody’s temper flares (=they become angry)On bad days, Elaine’s temper would flare into a violent rage.phrasesa fit/flash/burst of temper (=when you are very angry for a short time)A businessman assaulted his wife and son in a fit of temper, a court heard yesterday.tempers get/become frayed British English (=people become annoyed)People were pushing each other, and tempers were becoming frayed.a temper tantrum (=a time when someone, especially a child, behaves very angrily and unreasonably)My nephew has temper tantrums if he can’t get his own way.
Examples from the Corpus
temper• Kelly ruled by his bad temper.• There's one thing about Don that you should know - he's got a really bad temper.• Jill needs to learn to control her temper.• I'd rather run the mile than face Elizabeth in one of her tempers.• His temper, held so carefully in check around Sandra's fragile emotions, exploded.• I had warned my wife of my terrible temper.• It was on the second day that tempers, already frayed, finally ripped.• He's not a bad man, but he has a violent temper.• His wife left him because of his violent temper.• This had annoyed Jonquil and set her steel earring swinging with temper.tempers flare• Before tempers flared, Dutriz cracked a joke, and talk returned to the news.• Sukarno procrastinated; tempers flared up, the students withdrew.fly into a temper• I was made to feel like a petulant child who has flown into a temper because his favorite toy was removed.• Mary's natural tendency to fly into a temper probably did not increase their chances very much.temper of• Gandhi knew the temper of the country and saw the necessity for action.tempertemper2 verb [transitive] 1 formalREDUCE to make something less severe or extremetemper something with/by something The heat in this coastal town is tempered by cool sea breezes.2 HCMTIto make metal as hard as is needed by heating it and then putting it in cold water tempered steel→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
temper• That concern may temper any gains in exporters, rising with the dollar.• Nor does time appear to have tempered his demeanor.• Through this, her love can be tempered into a compassion and understanding with which she can help and sustain others.• Would this in any way temper the delight with which Garnett would embrace the streak?• They are the product of a system created in less democratic times by Founders who wanted to temper the popular will.• Nor did he do much to temper them.• Although their love for each other was growing steadily, the emotion was tempered with suspicion.Origin temper2 (900-1000) Latin temperare “to divide up properly, mix, keep within proper limits, temper” 