Words / B2

DEEP-uh-n/ˈdiːpən/

To deepen is to become or make deeper, stronger, or more serious: deepen a channel; a deepening crisis. Deep is the adjective (already in the dictionary); intensify is a close twin for a crisis. The deficit deepened; still quote the £ figure. Mix-up: deepen vs depend; deepen as a wellness slogan; do not write deepen for a one-off blip with no trend.

Meaning

To become or make deeper, stronger, or more serious.

Examples

• “The deficit deepened; still quote the £ figure, the accounts said.”
• “Deepen the trench in the fieldwork, which is the make-deeper sense — still record the centimetres.”

Good to know

deepen a + noun; a deepening crisis / recession. Adjective: deep. Noun: depth. Close: intensify. Trap: depend. Accounts, geography, and news. Make or become deeper or more serious — quote the figure.

Near in meaning

intensify, worsen, strengthen

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