- lighten up
- intransitive verb Date: 1946 to take things less seriously
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
lighten up
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Lighten — Light en, v. t. [See {Light} to illuminate.] 1. 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.] [1913 Webster] A key of fire ran all… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Lighten — Light en, v. t. [See {Light} not heavy.] 1. 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. [1913 Webster] 2. To make less burdensome or … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
lighten — [v1] illuminate become light, brighten, flash, gleam, illume, irradiate, light, light up, make bright, shine; concept 624 Ant. blacken, darken, dim, dull lighten [v2] reduce weight, load allay, alleviate, ameliorate, assuage, attenuate, buoy,… … New thesaurus
Lighten — Light en (l[imac]t n), v. i. [See {Light} to alight.] To descend; to light. [1913 Webster] O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us. Book of Common Prayer [Eng. Ed.]. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
lighten — (someone s)/the load to make a difficult or upsetting situation easier to deal with. Anyway, we ll be getting a temp in next month to do some of this work so that should lighten your load … New idioms dictionary
lighten# — lighten vb *illuminate, illumine, light, enlighten, illustrate Antonyms: darken lighten vb alleviate, mitigate, *relieve, assuage, allay Analogous words: lessen, reduce, diminish, *decrease, abate: *moderate, temper, qualify: attenuate, extenuate … New Dictionary of Synonyms
lighten — Ⅰ. lighten [1] ► VERB 1) make or become lighter in weight. 2) make or become less serious. Ⅱ. lighten [2] ► VERB ▪ make or become brighter … English terms dictionary
lighten — lighten1 [līt′ n] vt. [ME lightnen] 1. to make light or bright; illuminate 2. to make light or pale 3. to cause to flash in or as in lightning: with out or forth 4. Archaic to give knowledge to; enlighten vi. 1 … English World dictionary
Lighten — Light en (l[imac]t n), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Lightened} (l[imac]t nd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Lightening}.] [OE. lightenen. See {Light} to kindle, illuminate.] 1. To burst forth or dart, as lightning; to shine with, or like, lightning; to display a… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
lighten — index abate (lessen), allay, alleviate, attenuate, commute, diminish, ease, extenuate … Law dictionary
lighten up — verb 1. make lighter or brighter The paint will brighten the room • Syn: ↑brighten, ↑lighten • Ant: ↑darken (for: ↑brighten) • Hypern … Useful english dictionary
