heightened; heightening
ˈhī-tᵊn-iŋ
ˈhīt-niŋ
1
a
: to increase the amount or degree of : augment
heighten interest in the book
heighten tensions in the region
b
: to make brighter or more intense : deepen
… slowly rubbing the gold piece … as if to heighten its lustre …—Herman Melville
c
: to bring out more strongly : point up
… uses the camera to punctuate and heighten the story.—Stacey Bell
d
: to make more acute : sharpen
heighten the contrast on a monitor
2
a
: to raise high or higher : elevate
b
: to raise above the ordinary or trite
heightened prose
3
obsolete
: elate
2
a
: to become great or greater in amount, degree, or extent
b
: to become brighter or more intense
Cite this Entry
“Heighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heighten. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.
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