LIGHTEN • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Lighten

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/lˈaɪtən/ Listen

verb

Lighten v. t.

To make light or clear; to light; to illuminate; as, to lighten an apartment with lamps or gas; to lighten the streets. (In this sense less common than light.) "A key of fire ran all along the shore, And lightened all the river with a blaze."

To illuminate with knowledge; to enlighten. (In this sense less common than enlighten.) "Lighten my spirit with one clear heavenly ray."

To emit or disclose in, or as in, lightning; to flash out, like lightning. "His eye... lightens forth Controlling majesty."

To free from trouble and fill with joy. "They looked unto him, and were lightened."

Lighten v. t.

To make lighter, or less heavy; to reduce in weight; to relieve of part of a load or burden; as, to lighten a ship by unloading; to lighten a load or burden.

To make less burdensome or afflictive; to alleviate; as, to lighten the cares of life or the burden of grief.

To cheer; to exhilarate. "Lightens my humor with his merry jests."

Lighten v. i. To descend; to light. "O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us."

Lighten v. i. (past & past part. lightened; pres. part. lightening)

To burst forth or dart, as lightning; to shine with, or like, lightning; to display a flash or flashes of lightning; to flash. "This dreadful night, That thunders, lightens, opens graves, and roars As doth the lion."

To grow lighter; to become less dark or lowering; to brighten; to clear, as the sky.

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Etymology of 'Lighten'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Lighten" Quotes from Famous Books

... father!—give him back to me and make me happy. Ah, ha!—I see, I see, you have feelings, better feelings—feelings that are not seared. You will have pity on me; you will forgive, relent-you cannot see a wretch suffer and not be moved to lighten her pain!" The calm, pensive expression that lights up her countenance is indeed enough to inspire the tender impulses of a heart in which every sense of generosity ...

— Justice in the By-Ways - A Tale of Life • F. Colburn Adams

... four hours the whole crew went at it with a will; torn and bleeding hands were unheeded, and the thought of death was put away. All the same the boat was kept ready for leaving the ship; but just as the night came down and the white crests began to lighten on the following seas, the pump sucked slightly, and the crew knew that they might stand by the vessel. For six-and-twenty hours they had been on deck without a spell; they had been working in an incessant flood of water; their sleeves ...

— The Romance of the Coast • James Runciman

... unprintable actualities, but if we are to help we must feel how terrible and immediate the need is. No one can really meet that need but the educated Indian Christian women whom God is preparing in this day for service. They are the ones who are Lighted to Lighten. They are the Hope of the future. Fifty years ago, after the Civil war, the light began in the organization of Woman's Missionary Societies. Through all the years women have gone, never very many, sometimes not very strong, limited in various ways, but with one stern determination, ...

— Lighted to Lighten: The Hope of India • Alice B. Van Doren

... the ship, but were driven back upon the shore by a raging sea. Early in the evening they tried a second time, and got some little distance from land, but the waves were so violent that they were forced to throw overboard all their jars of water to lighten their boats. Even then they were unable to reach their ship, but went ashore in the darkness and hauled up their canoes. They were unable to rest where they landed because of the great numbers of noisy seals ...

— Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 8 • Charles H. Sylvester

... been built, close to the basons in which the rain water is collected. If there are any wells, they are within the walls of the castle, and the water is drawn up by camels in order to fill the basons, on the arrival of the Hadj. The pilgrims, in order to lighten their loads, generally leave in every castle a small parcel of provisions, which they take on their return. These castles are garrisoned by four or five men of Damascus, who remain shut up there the whole year until they are relieved by the passage ...

— Travels in Syria and the Holy Land • John Burckhardt

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