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
Herman Melville
c
: to bring out more strongly : point up
… uses the camera to punctuate and heighten the story.—Stacey Bell
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
Examples of heighten in a Sentence
The plan will only heighten tensions between the two groups.
This tragedy has heightened our awareness of the need for improved safety measures.
Tensions between the two groups have heightened.
Recent Examples on the Web
The looming move added another layer of tension to the season, heightening speculation that Beatrice and Eugenie might choose to spend the holiday with their parents rather than join the royal family at Sandringham.
—Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE, 25 Dec. 2025
Exercise heightened caution during this period.
—Bay Area Weather Report, Mercury News, 25 Dec. 2025
The multiple storms in quick succession are expected to quickly saturate soils and heighten the risk for urban flooding, along with sharply rising creeks and streams, and minor flooding along larger rivers such as the Russian and Napa rivers.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 22 Dec. 2025
Marinated salmon and confit artichoke arrived wreathed in smoke under a glass cloche to heighten our attention to umami.
—Gemma Price, Travel + Leisure, 21 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heighten
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Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE, 25 Dec. 2025
Exercise heightened caution during this period.
—Bay Area Weather Report, Mercury News, 25 Dec. 2025
The multiple storms in quick succession are expected to quickly saturate soils and heighten the risk for urban flooding, along with sharply rising creeks and streams, and minor flooding along larger rivers such as the Russian and Napa rivers.
—Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 22 Dec. 2025
Marinated salmon and confit artichoke arrived wreathed in smoke under a glass cloche to heighten our attention to umami.
—Gemma Price, Travel + Leisure, 21 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heighten
Cite this Entry
“Heighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heighten. Accessed 28 Dec. 2025.
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