Anodyne
Definition: soothing, pain-relieving
It’s literally Greek for “less pain.” It can be used for the entire category of painkilling drugs.
The word is often used to mean “things that have been deliberately toned-down to reduce stress or anxiety.”
Why I Looked It Up
In Dopamine Nation:
To my surprise, I began to tell him an anodyne version of my late-night novel reading.
In this situation, the author was embarrassed about reading young adult romance novels, so she’s implying that she told someone a less-embarrassing version of her addition.
In Knowing What We Know, in discussing the development of the atomic bomb:
The creation of bodies with bizarrely anodyne names – the Uranium Committee, the Office for the Development of Substitute Materials, the Manhattan Engineering District, then the Manhattan Project.
The implication is that the name were very…normal, and boring, considering they were involved with a project to create the most fearsome weapon in history. The names were designed to not raise eyebrows or cause stress.
Update
Added on
In a NY Times article about Harvard University:
Harvard’s decision to create task forces on antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus – usually the most anodyne of institutional responses…
In this case, the word is used to mean something that is supposed to represent action, but is a fairly timid response in reality.