lighten
(redirected from lightens)Also found in: Thesaurus, Idioms.
light·en 1
(līt′n)v. light·ened, light·en·ing, light·ens
v.tr.
1.
a. To make light or lighter; illuminate or brighten.
b. To make (a color) lighter.
2. Archaic To enlighten.
v.intr.
1. To become lighter; brighten.
2. To be luminous; shine.
3. To give off flashes of lightning.
light·en 2
(līt′n)v. light·ened, light·en·ing, light·ens
v.tr.
1. To make less heavy: I lightened my backpack by removing a large textbook.
2. To lessen the severity or oppressiveness of: lighten the workload. See Synonyms at relieve.
3. To make less worried or more cheerful: lighten the mood.
v.intr.
Phrasal Verb: 1. To become less in weight.
2. To become less oppressive, troublesome, or severe.
3. To become cheerful: The mood lightened when the party started.
lighten up Informal
To take matters less seriously: Everything will work out fine, so stop worrying and lighten up.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
lighten
(ˈlaɪtən)vb
1. to become or make light
2. (intr) to shine; glow
3. (intr) (of lightning) to flash
4. (tr) an archaic word for enlighten
lighten
(ˈlaɪtən)vb
1. to make or become less heavy
2. to make or become less burdensome or oppressive; mitigate
3. to make or become more cheerful or lively
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
light•en1
(ˈlaɪt n)v.i.
1. to become lighter or less dark; brighten.
2. to brighten or light up, as the eyes or features.
3. to flash as or like lightning.
4. Archaic. to shine, gleam, or be bright.
v.t. 5. to give light to; illuminate.
6. to brighten (the eyes, etc.).
7. to make lighter or less dark.
8. Obs. to flash or emit like lightning.
light′en•er, n.
light•en2
(ˈlaɪt n)v. -ened, -en•ing. v.t.
1. to make lighter in weight.
2. to lessen the load of or upon.
3. to make less burdensome or oppressive; mitigate: to lighten taxes.
4. to cheer or gladden: Such news lightens my heart.
v.i. 5. to become less severe, stringent, or harsh; ease up.
6. to become less heavy, burdensome, or oppressive.
7. to become less gloomy; perk up.
8. lighten up, to become less serious or earnest.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
lighten
Past participle: lightened
Gerund: lightening
| Imperative |
|---|
| lighten |
| lighten |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | lighten - make more cheerful; "the conversation lightened me up a bit" cheer - show approval or good wishes by shouting; "everybody cheered the birthday boy" weigh down, weigh on - be oppressive or disheartening to |
| 2. | lighten - reduce the weight on; make lighter; "she lightened the load on the tired donkey" | |
| 3. | lighten - become more cheerful; "after a glass of wine, he lightened up a bit" | |
| 4. | lighten - make lighter or brighter; "The paint will brighten the room" | |
| 5. | lighten - become lighter; "The room lightened up" change - undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature; "She changed completely as she grew older"; "The weather changed last night" irradiate - cast rays of light upon illume, illuminate, illumine, light, light up - make lighter or brighter; "This lamp lightens the room a bit" darken - become dark or darker; "The sky darkened" | |
| 6. | lighten - alleviate or remove (pressure or stress) or make less oppressive; "relieve the pressure and the stress"; "lighten the burden of caring for her elderly parents" mitigate - make less severe or harsh; "mitigating circumstances" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
lighten
1verb brighten, flash, shine, illuminate, gleam, light up, irradiate, become light, make bright The sky began to lighten.
lighten
2verb
1. ease, relieve, alleviate, allay, reduce, facilitate, lessen, mitigate, assuage He felt the need to lighten the atmosphere.
ease intensify, worsen, heighten, aggravate, make worse
ease intensify, worsen, heighten, aggravate, make worse
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
lighten 1
verb1. To provide, cover, or fill with light:
lighten 2
verbThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يَخِف وزنُهيُضيء، يُنير
odlehčitzjasňovat
blive letteregøre letteregøre lyslysne
léttalÿsa
odľahčiťzjasniť
aydınlanmakaydınlatmakhafifle mek
lighten
1 [ˈlaɪtn]B. VI [sky] → clarear (Met) → relampaguear
lighten
2 [ˈlaɪtn]A. VT [+ load] → aligerar, hacer menos pesado (fig) (= make cheerful) [+ atmosphere] → relajar; [+ heart] → alegrar; (= reduce) [+ cares] → aliviar
B. VI [load] → aligerarse, hacerse menos pesado; [heart] → alegrarse
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
lighten
[ˈlaɪtən] vi
[sky] → s'éclaircir
[mood] → s'égayer
vt (= make lighter in colour) [+ shade] → éclaircir
to lighten one's hair → s'éclaircir les cheveux
to lighten one's hair → s'éclaircir les cheveux
(= make less heavy) [+ object, load, burden] → alléger
to lighten one's burden (fig) → se soulager d'un fardeau
In sharing this secret you lighten your burden → En confiant ce secret, tu te soulages d'un fardeau.
to lighten sb's load (fig) → alléger la charge de qn
By doing this you are lightening the load of hospital doctors → En procédant ainsi, vous allégez la charge des médecins hospitaliers.
to lighten sb's burden (fig) → alléger le fardeau de qn
to lighten one's burden (fig) → se soulager d'un fardeau
In sharing this secret you lighten your burden → En confiant ce secret, tu te soulages d'un fardeau.
to lighten sb's load (fig) → alléger la charge de qn
By doing this you are lightening the load of hospital doctors → En procédant ainsi, vous allégez la charge des médecins hospitaliers.
to lighten sb's burden (fig) → alléger le fardeau de qn
[+ mixture, dish] → alléger
(= make more cheerful) [+ mood, atmosphere] → égayerlight entertainment n → divertissement m léger, variétés fpl
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
lighten
1vi → hell werden, sich aufhellen; (mood) → sich heben; (atmosphere) → sich entspannen; to thunder and lighten (Met) → donnern und blitzen
lighten
2Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
lighten
1 [ˈlaɪtn]1. vt (darkness) → rischiarare, illuminare; (hair, colour) → schiarire
2. vi → schiarirsi; (room) → rischiararsi
lighten
2 [ˈlaɪtn] vt (load) → alleggerire (fig) (make cheerful, heart, atmosphere) → sollevareCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
light1
(lait) noun1. the brightness given by the sun, a flame, lamps etc that makes things able to be seen. It was nearly dawn and the light was getting stronger; Sunlight streamed into the room.
2. something which gives light (eg a lamp). Suddenly all the lights went out.
3. something which can be used to set fire to something else; a flame. Have you got a light for my cigarette?
4. a way of viewing or regarding. He regarded her action in a favourable light.
adjective1. having light; not dark. The studio was a large, light room.
2. (of a colour) pale; closer to white than black. light green.
verb – past tense, past participle lit (lit) , ˈlighted – 1. to give light to. The room was lit only by candles.
2. to (make something) catch fire. She lit the gas; I think this match is damp, because it won't light.
ˈlightness nounˈlighten verb
to make or become brighter. The white ceiling lightened the room; The sky was lightening.
ˈlighter noun something used for lighting (a cigarette etc).
ˈlighting noun a means of providing light. The lighting was so bad in the restaurant that we could hardly see.
lighthouse noun a building built on rocks, coastline etc with a (flashing) light to guide or warn ships.
ˈlight-year noun the distance light travels in a year (nearly 9.5 million million kilometres).
bring to light to reveal or cause to be noticed. The scandal was brought to light by the investigations of a journalist.
come to light to be revealed or discovered. The manuscript came to light in a box of books at an auction.
in the light of taking into consideration (eg new information). The theory has been abandoned in the light of more recent discoveries.
light up1. to begin to give out light. Evening came and the streetlights lit up.
2. to make, be or become full of light. The powerful searchlight lit up the building; She watched the house light up as everyone awoke.
3. to make or become happy. Her face lit up when she saw him; A sudden smile lit up her face.
see the light1. to be born, discovered, produced etc. After many problems his invention finally saw the light (of day).
2. to be converted to someone else's point of view etc.
set light to to cause to begin burning. He set light to the pile of rubbish in his garden.
light2
(lait) adjective1. easy to lift or carry; of little weight. I bought a light suitcase for plane journeys.
2. easy to bear, suffer or do. Next time the punishment will not be so light.
3. (of food) easy to digest. a light meal.
4. of less weight than it should be. The load of grain was several kilos light.
5. of little weight. Aluminium is a light metal.
6. lively or agile. She was very light on her feet.
7. cheerful; not serious. light music.
8. little in quantity; not intense, heavy, strong etc. light rain.
9. (of soil) containing a lot of sand.
ˈlightly adverbˈlightness noun
ˈlighten verb
to make or become less heavy. She lightened her suitcase by taking out several pairs of shoes; The postman's bag of parcels lightened as he went from house to house.
ˌlight-ˈfingered adjective inclined to steal things.
ˌlight-ˈheaded adjective dizzy and giddy.
ˌlight-ˈhearted adjective happy and free from anxiety; not grave or serious. a light-hearted mood.
ˈlightweight adjective light in weight. a lightweight raincoat.
get off lightly to escape or be allowed to go without severe punishment etc.
make light of to treat (problems etc) as unimportant.
travel light to travel with little luggage.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
lighten
vt. iluminar, prender la luz; [color] aclarar.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012