adjective
1 : serving to alleviate pain: the anodyne properties of certain drugs 2 : not likely to offend or arouse tensions : innocuous
his speech contained a single anodyne reference to the man who preceded him. —John F. Burns
Hmm, beyond diction/dialect choices, the only reason I can think of for this word on the list is its age and obscurity. That said, I can see uses in describing salves, spells, or other treatments of wounds or illness. I can also see it used to discribe someone’s ability to walk into a tense situation and allivate it.