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Enhance Has Latin Roots
When enhance was borrowed into English in the 13th century, it literally meant to raise something higher. That sense, though now obsolete, provides a clue about the origins of the word. Enhance, which was spelled enhauncen in Middle English, comes to us from Anglo-French enhaucer or enhauncer ("to raise"), which can be traced back to the Latin altus ("high") by way of an assumed Vulgar Latin verb inaltiare, which would have been formed by combining the prefix in- with the Latin altus. Although enhance initially applied only to physically making things higher, it developed an additional and less literal sense of "to exalt especially in rank or spirit," and quickly acquired extended figurative senses for raising the value or attractiveness of something or someone.
Examples of enhance in a Sentence
Nc Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 5 July 2025
But with a smart approach, mirrors can truly enhance a space.
—Caron Golden, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 July 2025
Although generative AI fuels the potential for automation to eliminate jobs, AI can also enhance technical, creative, legal and business roles, the report said.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2025
Ferrari and McLaren have brought effective upgrades that enhanced performance in the Austrian GP.
—Saajan Jogia, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for enhance
Cite this Entry
“Enhance.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/enhance. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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enhance
verb
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