lighten

CEFRB2

/ˈlaɪ.tn̩/

verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    verb

    To make something less heavy, serious, or dark.

  2. 02

    verb

    Extra detail

    To become brighter or clearer; to brighten.

Examples

  • He needs a few jokes to lighten up his talk.

  • It was just a joke. Lighten up!

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
5
Synonyms
2

Also pronounced

  • [ˈlaɪʔn̩]

Deep Dive

verb

Extra meanings

  1. To flash lightning, to give off lightning.

  2. To make brighter or clearer; to illuminate.

  3. To emit or disclose in, or as if in, lightning; to flash out, like lightning.

More examples

In context

  • Book of Common Prayer O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us.

  • Sorrow can be lightened by being openly brought out.

  • to lighten an apartment with lamps or gas; to lighten the streets

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

She added water to the paint to blank its color and make it softer.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

verb

From Middle English lightnen, equivalent to light + -en.