as in strengthening
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1
as in intensifying
to make markedly greater in measure or degree
several controversial measures have heightened parental awareness of the impact of school policy decisions
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lifting
to move from a lower to a higher place or position
heightened the hem on her skirt just a couple of inches
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Recent Examples of heightening
James Grebey, Vulture, 31 Jan. 2026
Lighting designer Esquire Jauchem softens and brightens above and around the ever-moving Rubinstein as topics and memories call for the heightening and muting of the president’s feelings and emotions.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 20 Jan. 2026
Just a day later, Neptune retrograde shifts into Pisces, heightening intuition and deepening emotional awareness with entirely new depth.
—Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 Oct. 2025
Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 8 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
In October 2024, the union passed a resolution calling for the United States to stop providing weapons to Israel, heightening tensions between the union and Jewish organizations and teachers who oppose its anti-Israel advocacy.
—Larry Sand, Daily News, 6 Feb. 2026
What Anthropic unveiled Thursday might spell yet more trouble for those older software companies, further heightening market anxiety.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 6 Feb. 2026
The nurturing Moon glides into your 4th House of Home and Family, heightening feelings about your past.
—Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 5 Feb. 2026
Neptune is already here, heightening your sensitivity to environments, tasks, and expectations that drain you.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 29 Jan. 2026
Luxury and drama were key qualities of the presentation, with Gupta heightening bridal style with lavish designs.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 28 Jan. 2026
As a result, sewage blockages and overflows became widespread, increasing the risk of wastewater contaminating drinking water sources and heightening the likelihood of outbreaks of diarrhea, hepatitis A and other waterborne diseases in an already vulnerable community.
—Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 28 Jan. 2026
Noun
It all sticks — every Dutch angle, inventively silly camera placement, and enthusiastic heightening of high-noon suspense.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 31 Jan. 2026
Lighting designer Esquire Jauchem softens and brightens above and around the ever-moving Rubinstein as topics and memories call for the heightening and muting of the president’s feelings and emotions.
—Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 20 Jan. 2026
Just a day later, Neptune retrograde shifts into Pisces, heightening intuition and deepening emotional awareness with entirely new depth.
—Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 Oct. 2025
Verb
On Monday, around 100 community members rallied in downtown San Jose to protest the possibility of ICE agents heightening their anti-immigration campaign during the big game.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 8 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
In October 2024, the union passed a resolution calling for the United States to stop providing weapons to Israel, heightening tensions between the union and Jewish organizations and teachers who oppose its anti-Israel advocacy.
—Larry Sand, Daily News, 6 Feb. 2026
What Anthropic unveiled Thursday might spell yet more trouble for those older software companies, further heightening market anxiety.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 6 Feb. 2026
The nurturing Moon glides into your 4th House of Home and Family, heightening feelings about your past.
—Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 5 Feb. 2026
Neptune is already here, heightening your sensitivity to environments, tasks, and expectations that drain you.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 29 Jan. 2026
Luxury and drama were key qualities of the presentation, with Gupta heightening bridal style with lavish designs.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 28 Jan. 2026
As a result, sewage blockages and overflows became widespread, increasing the risk of wastewater contaminating drinking water sources and heightening the likelihood of outbreaks of diarrhea, hepatitis A and other waterborne diseases in an already vulnerable community.
—Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 28 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heightening
Noun
-
Rosemary oil—one of the key ingredients in the mask—is like hair-growth gold, but ceramides, jojoba, and keratin are also present in the strengthening and thickening formula.—
Kaitlin Clapinski,
InStyle,
10 Feb. 2026
-
It is highly valued for scalable, high-volume production, particularly in energy storage and composite strengthening.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This causes the outer layers of the star to expand and cool, evolving into a red giant, while the interior of the core heats up, intensifying the rate of fusion within it.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Frydnes acknowledged that awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to individuals facing persecution can carry risks, potentially intensifying pressure against them.—
Jomana Karadsheh,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Takaichi has pledged to revise security and defense policies by December to bolster Japan’s offensive military capabilities, lifting a ban on weapons exports and moving further away from the country’s postwar pacifist principles.—
Mari Yamaguchi,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2026
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Chip and Kasinee Tolman begin each day by lifting their two adult children out of bed and into their wheelchairs.—
Michael Cuglietta,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The focus areas expected to power these margin increases for FedEx include its high-value B2B and specialized B2C segments.—
Glenn Taylor,
Sourcing Journal,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Without that data, the BLS assumed that no price increases had taken place during the month for most categories of goods and services.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Moving forward, Sourisse sees the business deepening its roots in Asia, citing Southeast Asia’s Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, and East Asia’s China, Japan and South Korea as markets to watch.—
Angelica Ang,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
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As a catalyst, the analyst wrote that SoFi is building a durable, multi-year compounding business by deepening primary customer relationships that drive higher lifetime value, lower acquisition costs and broader cross-selling.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The agent is seen raising the pepper spray can, pointing it towards the crowd in what looked to be an attempt to keep them at a distance.—
Gio Insignares,
CBS News,
5 Feb. 2026
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In an email to The Times, Newsom spokesperson Tara Gallegos said the governor had a strong record of fighting for workers’ rights, including raising the minimum wage and expanding sick leave and other worker protections.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In exchange for not experiencing the thrill and excitement of watching a football game in person, those of us at home will get the benefit of experiencing the game with a few technological enhancements.—
Jason Corso,
Fortune,
8 Feb. 2026
-
The upgrade will include multiple enhancements to the customer experience and once implemented, Coloradans can expect a new option for a streamlined user experience.—
Jennifer McRae,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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These systems optimize contrast, brightness, and color with machine learning algorithms that adjust to scene content and ambient light, significantly enhancing viewing quality without manual calibration.—
Jason Phillips,
USA Today,
11 Feb. 2026
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With plans for major renovations to Robb Field and Dusty Rhodes Park already approved by the city, the emphasis this time was on enhancing smaller parks that primarily serve local residents.—
Steven Mihailovich,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heightening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heightening. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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