widen (redirected from widens)

wid·en  (wdn)

tr. & intr.v. wid·ened, wid·en·ing, wid·ens

To make or become wide or wider.

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widen·er n.

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widen [ˈwaɪd^ən]

vb

to make or become wide or wider

widener  n

Thesaurus

Verb	1.	widen - become broader or wider or more extensive; "The road widened" increase - become bigger or greater in amount; "The amount of work increased" flare out, flare - become flared and widen, usually at one end; "The bellbottom pants flare out" dilate, distend - become wider; "His pupils were dilated" narrow, contract - make or become more narrow or restricted; "The selection was narrowed"; "The road narrowed"
	2.	widen - make (clothes) larger; "Let out that dress--I gained a lot of weight" let out vary, alter, change - become different in some particular way, without permanently losing one's or its former characteristics or essence; "her mood changes in accordance with the weather"; "The supermarket's selection of vegetables varies according to the season"
	3.	widen - make wider; "widen the road" alter, change, modify - cause to change; make different; cause a transformation; "The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue" white out - widen the interlinear spacing by inserting leads
	4.	widen - extend in scope or range or area; "The law was extended to all citizens"; "widen the range of applications"; "broaden your horizon"; "Extend your backyard" extend, broaden increase - make bigger or more; "The boss finally increased her salary"; "The university increased the number of students it admitted" broaden - make broader; "broaden the road" territorialise, territorialize - extend by adding territory globalise, globalize - make world-wide in scope or application; "Markets are being increasingly globalized" expand, extend - expand the influence of; "The King extended his rule to the Eastern part of the continent" stretch - extend the scope or meaning of; often unduly; "Stretch the limits"; "stretch my patience"; "stretch the imagination"

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widen

verb

1. broaden, expand, enlarge, dilate, spread, extend, stretch, open wide, open out or up He had an operation to widen an artery in his heart.
broaden reduce, narrow, shrink, diminish, tighten, compress, constrict

2. get wider, spread, extend, expand, broaden, open wide, open out or up The river widens considerably as it begins to turn east.
get wider contract, narrow, shrink, diminish, tighten

Translations

widen [ˈwaɪdn]

A. VT

1. (lit) [+ road, river, sleeve] → ensanchar

2. (fig) [+ knowledge, circle of friends] → extender, ampliar

B. VI

1. (lit) (also widen out) → ensancharse
the passage widens out into a cave → el pasillo se ensancha para formar una caverna

2. (fig) the gap between rich and poor has widened → ha aumentado la diferencia entre ricos y pobres
the widening gap between the rich and the poor → el creciente abismo entre los ricos y los pobres

widen [ˈwaɪd^ən]

vt

[+ road, pavement, river] → élargir
They're widening the road to make another lane → Ils élargissent la route pour faire une autre voie.

[+ experience, knowledge] → accroître
They could widen their experience by going on a course → Ils pouvaient accroître leur expérience en suivant un stage.

[+ gap] → élargir; [+ difference] → accroître
These policies will widen the gap between the rich and the poor → Ces politiques élargiront le fossé entre riches et pauvres.

vi

[river, road] → s'élargir

[gap] → s'élargir; [difference] → s'accroître

widen

vt road → verbreitern; passage, scope → erweitern; circle of friends → vergrößern; appeal → erhöhen; knowledge etc → erweitern

vi → breiter werden; (interests etc) → sich ausweiten

widen [ˈwaɪdn]

1. vt (also) (fig) → ampliare, allargare

2. vi (also widen out) → ampliarsi