widened; widening
ˈwīd-niŋ 
ˈwī-dᵊn-iŋ
: to increase the width, scope, or extent of
widen a road
widen an investigation
: to become wide or wider
a widening gap
Examples of widen in a Sentence
The city is going to widen the road.
They plan to widen the investigation.
Her eyes widened in surprise.
They went swimming at a spot where the river widens.
The scope of the investigation has widened.
Recent Examples on the Web
The glaciers' retreats have changed the landscape significantly, widening lakes and producing new bodies of water, proglacial lakes, a growing pool of meltwater.
—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Technology should not widen the gap between care and the people who need it.
—Scott R. Schell, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Lund also recently departed his other board chair position — from energy giant BP Plc — after the gap between BP and its peers widened.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2025
While young men are increasingly leaning to the far right, young women are moving further to the left, creating a widening ideological divide.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for widen
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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Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 22 Oct. 2025
Technology should not widen the gap between care and the people who need it.
—Scott R. Schell, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Lund also recently departed his other board chair position — from energy giant BP Plc — after the gap between BP and its peers widened.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2025
While young men are increasingly leaning to the far right, young women are moving further to the left, creating a widening ideological divide.
—Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for widen
Cite this Entry
“Widen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/widen. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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