sweetened; sweetening
ˈswē-tᵊn-iŋ 
ˈswēt-niŋ
1
: to make sweet
2
: to soften the mood or attitude of
3
: to make less painful or trying
4
: to free from a harmful or undesirable quality or substance
especially
: to remove sulfur compounds from
sweeten natural gas
5
: to make more valuable or attractive
sweeten the deal
: such as
a
: to increase (a pot not won on the previous deal) by anteing prior to another deal
b
: to place additional securities as collateral for (a loan)
: to become sweet
Examples of sweeten in a Sentence
He sweetened his cereal a little.
He sweetened the deal with a large signing bonus.
Recent Examples on the Web
The inclusion of online content creators, such as podcasters and social media influencers, promises to sweeten the allure of internet fame and marks the rising prominence of a new class of performers.
—
Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
Girl Scouts of the USA is rolling out a new cookie flavor next year, hoping to sweeten sales after a rocky stretch marked by higher prices, plunging demand and nearly $3 million in operating losses.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 12 Sep. 2025
The news led many to speculate that the move was a political one aimed at sweetening a then-pending merger between parent company Paramount and Skydance — a deal that the companies needed the FCC to approve.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
It’s sweetened with a cup-for-cup white sugar substitute.
—Faye Levy, Oc Register, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sweeten
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
Girl Scouts of the USA is rolling out a new cookie flavor next year, hoping to sweeten sales after a rocky stretch marked by higher prices, plunging demand and nearly $3 million in operating losses.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 12 Sep. 2025
The news led many to speculate that the move was a political one aimed at sweetening a then-pending merger between parent company Paramount and Skydance — a deal that the companies needed the FCC to approve.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2025
It’s sweetened with a cup-for-cup white sugar substitute.
—Faye Levy, Oc Register, 9 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sweeten
Cite this Entry
“Sweeten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sweeten. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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