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
And that's a good thing in a country where 129 million people face at least one major chronic illness and heightened risk of premature death, much of it from bad eating habits, said a senior policy adviser in the Obama White House and a private chef for the former first family.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
The intuitive Moon moves through your 9th House of Travel, heightening the longing to explore ideas that restore hope and widen your world.
—Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Feb. 2026
The file dump has heightened scrutiny of Epstein’s global connections with public figures including Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor - the younger brother of King Charles - Peter Mandelson, the former UK ambassador to the United States and Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit.
—Reuters 13 Hr Ago, CNN Money, 7 Feb. 2026
And yet, in today’s topical songs by legacy rock artists, such elements don’t heighten the immediacy of the day’s horrors but, rather, run them through a sepia-toned filter.
—Mitch Therieau, New Yorker, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for heighten
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Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 7 Feb. 2026
The intuitive Moon moves through your 9th House of Travel, heightening the longing to explore ideas that restore hope and widen your world.
—Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Feb. 2026
The file dump has heightened scrutiny of Epstein’s global connections with public figures including Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor - the younger brother of King Charles - Peter Mandelson, the former UK ambassador to the United States and Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit.
—Reuters 13 Hr Ago, CNN Money, 7 Feb. 2026
And yet, in today’s topical songs by legacy rock artists, such elements don’t heighten the immediacy of the day’s horrors but, rather, run them through a sepia-toned filter.
—Mitch Therieau, New Yorker, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for heighten
Cite this Entry
“Heighten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heighten. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.
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