Translation guide
The English word "tempering" has several distinct meanings. This guide covers the most common uses: heat treatment of metal, glass, or chocolate; moderating or softening something; and a few specialized senses. For each meaning, natural Japanese expressions are provided.
To heat and then cool a material (metal, glass, chocolate) to achieve desired properties like hardness, strength, or texture.
The standard term for tempering metal. Refers to reheating quenched steel to reduce brittleness.
鋼の焼き戻しは硬度と靭性のバランスを取るために行われる。
Tempering of steel is performed to balance hardness and toughness.
Loanword from English, used broadly for tempering in technical contexts, especially for chocolate and sometimes metal/glass.
チョコレートのテンパリングは光沢とパリッとした食感を出すために重要です。
Tempering chocolate is important to achieve gloss and a crisp texture.
Normalizing, a heat treatment similar to tempering but involving air cooling, used for steel. Not exactly the same, but sometimes confused.
焼きならしは鋼の組織を均一にするために行う。
Normalizing is performed to make the steel structure uniform.
To make something less severe, extreme, or harsh; to moderate or soften an effect, statement, or quality.
General verb meaning to soften, moderate, or alleviate. Can be used for tempering criticism, harshness, etc.
彼は批判を和らげるためにユーモアを使った。
He used humor to temper his criticism.
To ease, mitigate, or relax. Often used for tempering strict rules, tensions, or conditions.
新しい政策は規制を緩和するものだ。
The new policy tempers the regulations.
To go easy on, to hold back, to moderate one's actions. Implies tempering force or severity, often in a physical or competitive context.
初心者だから手加減してね。
I'm a beginner, so please temper your strength (go easy on me).
To mix a substance with another to modify its consistency, strength, or other properties (e.g., tempering clay, mortar, or paint).
Simple verb meaning to mix. In context, it can convey tempering when combined with an explanation of the purpose.
粘土に砂を混ぜて強度を調整する。
Temper the clay by mixing in sand to adjust its strength.
To knead, mix, or temper (clay, dough, etc.) by working it. Often used for tempering clay or plaster.
左官は壁塗りの前にモルタルを練る。
The plasterer tempers the mortar before plastering the wall.
To slowly raise the temperature of eggs by adding a hot liquid, preventing curdling.
Uses the loanword テンパリング specifically for the cooking technique. Often explained rather than having a single native word.
熱いスープを少しずつ加えて卵をテンパリングする。
Temper the eggs by gradually adding the hot soup.
Descriptive phrase meaning 'gently heat the eggs'. Not a fixed term, but clearly conveys the idea.
卵が固まらないようにゆっくり温めてください。
Temper the eggs so they don't curdle.
The English word 'tempering' covers many concepts that have distinct Japanese terms. Always choose the expression that matches the specific meaning (heat treatment, moderating, mixing, etc.). Using テンパリング for everything may sound unnatural outside technical or cooking contexts.