roughen

verb

rough·en | \ ˈrə-fən

roughened; roughening\ ˈrə-fə-niŋ

, ˈrəf-niŋ \

Definition of roughen

transitive verb

: to make rough or rougher her hands were roughened by work— Ellen Glasgow

intransitive verb

: to become rough

Examples of roughen in a Sentence

Roughen the surface with a file before you apply the glue. Her hands were roughened by years of hard work. Age caused his skin to roughen.

Recent Examples on the Web

Upgrade Your Kitchen Step 1: Sand the backsplash wall with 80-grit sandpaper; both thinset and tile mastic will adhere better to a roughened surface. — Joseph Truini, Popular Mechanics, "Your Quick and Dirty Guide to Tiling a Kitchen Backsplash," 26 Apr. 2019 This will roughen your hair up in just the right way. — Devin Toth, Redbook, "How to Get Sexy Hair for Valentine's Day," 13 Feb. 2012 Distinctive patches of raised, roughened skin cover each right whale’s head — allowing researchers to identify individual animals. — Sarah Kaplan, Washington Post, "These whales will be extinct in 25 years, scientists say — unless we act now to save them," 20 Apr. 2018 Distinctive patches of raised, roughened skin cover each right whale’s head - allowing researchers to identify individual animals. — Sarah Kaplan, BostonGlobe.com, "N. Atlantic right whales will be extinct in 25 years, scientists say - unless we act now to save them," 20 Apr. 2018 The sandpaper was used in an attempt to roughen one side of the ball, which changes its aerodynamics while bowling — similar to a pitcher tampering with a baseball. — Tom Schad, USA TODAY, "Sandpaper scandal shakes Australian national cricket team as cheating plot revealed," 28 Mar. 2018 Textured implants have roughened surfaces that may act as an irritant in some women, provoking inflammation that can lead to lymphoma, researchers say. — Denise Grady, New York Times, "More Cases Are Reported of Unusual Cancer Linked to Breast Implants," 21 Mar. 2018 Which meant that scores of atmosphere, delicacy and refinement were roughened by the acoustics. — Alan Artner, chicagotribune.com, "Alex Klein creates warm sounds in Orion Chamber Ensemble season opener," 28 Sep. 2017 Nearly all the cases have been linked to implants with a textured or slightly roughened surface, rather than a smooth covering. — Denise Grady, The Seattle Times, "New worries on breast implants after links found to lymphoma," 17 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'roughen.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.