darken
pronunciation
How to pronounce darken in British English:
UK [ˈdɑ:kən]
How to pronounce darken in American English:
US [ˈdɑrkən]
-
- Verb:
- become dark or darker
- become or make darker
- tarnish or stain
- make dark or darker
Word Origin
- darken (v.)
- c. 1300, "to make dark;" late 14c., "to become dark," from dark (adj.) + -en (1). The more usual verb in Middle English was simply dark, as it is in Chaucer and Shakespeare, and darken did not predominate until 17c. The Anglo-Saxons also had a verb sweorcan meaning "to grow dark." To darken someone's door (usually with a negative) is attested from 1729.
Antonym
Example
- 1. The calf will probably darken as it matures .
- 2. Avoid tanning " accelerators " or tanning pills that claim to speed up the body 's production of melanin or darken the skin .
- 3. Then , when snow or rain wash them onto an ice floe , they darken its surface and thus cause it to melt faster .
- 4. Black carbon , which absorbs heat from the sun , also accounts for anywhere from 10 % to 45 % of the contribution to global warming , and is linked to accelerated losses of glaciers in asia , because the soot deposits darken ice and make it more vulnerable to melting .
- 5. If we see a person first in a good light , it is difficult subsequently to darken that light .