Movatterモバイル変換

[0]ホーム
URL:

Jump to content
WiktionaryThe Free Dictionary
Search

lessen

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

[edit]

Etymology

[edit]

FromMiddle Englishlessenen,lasnen, equivalent toless +‎-en(verbal suffix).

Pronunciation

[edit]
might be distinguished fromlesson unlike in other accents

Verb

[edit]

lessen (third-person singular simple presentlessens,present participlelessening,simple past and past participlelessened)

  1. (transitive) To makeless; todiminish; toreduce.
    • a. 1686, Benjamin Calamy,a sermon
      Charity […] shalllessen his punishment.
    • December 6, 1709,Francis Atterbury,a sermon preach'd before the sons of the clergy at their anniversary-meeting in the Church of St. Paul
      St. Paul chose to magnify his office when ill men conspired tolessen it.
    • 1980, Robert M. Jones, editor,Walls and Ceilings, Time-Life Books,→ISBN, page44:
      The thin glass that makes mirror tiles light in weight also tends tolessen their reflective quality.
    • 2011 December 16, Denis Campbell, “Hospital staff 'lack skills to cope with dementia patients'”, inGuardian‎[1]:
      Many hospitals have not taken simple steps tolessen the distress and confusion which dementia sufferers' often feel on being somewhere so unfamiliar – such as making signs large and easy to read, using colour schemes to help patients find their way around unfamiliar wards and not putting family mementoes such as photographs nearby.
  2. (intransitive) To become less.
    Synonym:abate

Synonyms

[edit]

Derived terms

[edit]

Translations

[edit]
to make less
to become less

Conjunction

[edit]

lessen

  1. (nonstandard, dialect)unless.
    • 1895,Book-keeper (Detroit, Mich. : 1888). - Volume 8, Issue 6, page10:
      Ober closed his encomium with the serious statement that “Lessen he could marry Miss Jennie he would be a bachelor the balance of his life," to which the drayman replied that " If Oi were Miss Janie Oi'd black yer oi the minute ye thought of such a thing. The oidee."
    • 2011, Caroline Miller,Lamb in His Bosom, page107:
      She was fine-looking; he couldn't find a fault with her 'lessen he made it up.
    • 2011, J. California Cooper,Family:
      No more work outta themlessen they paid now.
    • 2013, Lornabelle Gethers,Honey Bea's Everlasting Gift, page88:
      That usually all they need fuh go that straight and narrow path,lessen they got that real badness or foolishness in them.

Anagrams

[edit]

Dutch

[edit]

Pronunciation

[edit]

Etymology 1

[edit]

FromMiddle Dutchlesschen, from a merger of twoOld Dutch[Term?] verbs:

Verb

[edit]

lessen

  1. (transitive) toquench (thirst)
Conjugation
[edit]
Conjugation oflessen (weak)
infinitivelessen
past singularleste
past participlegelest
infinitivelessen
gerundlessenn
present tensepast tense
1st person singularlesleste
2nd person sing. (jij)lest,les2leste
2nd person sing. (u)lestleste
2nd person sing. (gij)lestleste
3rd person singularlestleste
plurallessenlesten
subjunctive sing.1lesseleste
subjunctive plur.1lessenlesten
imperative sing.les
imperative plur.1lest
participleslessendgelest
1)Archaic.2) In case ofinversion.
Derived terms
[edit]

Etymology 2

[edit]

Fromles +‎-en.

Verb

[edit]

lessen

  1. (intransitive) to take alesson (usually adriving lesson)
Conjugation
[edit]
Conjugation oflessen (weak)
infinitivelessen
past singularleste
past participlegelest
infinitivelessen
gerundlessenn
present tensepast tense
1st person singularlesleste
2nd person sing. (jij)lest,les2leste
2nd person sing. (u)lestleste
2nd person sing. (gij)lestleste
3rd person singularlestleste
plurallessenlesten
subjunctive sing.1lesseleste
subjunctive plur.1lessenlesten
imperative sing.les
imperative plur.1lest
participleslessendgelest
1)Archaic.2) In case ofinversion.

Etymology 3

[edit]

See the etymology of the correspondinglemma form.

Noun

[edit]

lessen

  1. plural ofles

Hungarian

[edit]

Etymology

[edit]

les +‎-jen

Pronunciation

[edit]
  • IPA(key): [ˈlɛʃːɛn]
  • Hyphenation:les‧sen

Verb

[edit]

lessen

  1. third-personsingularsubjunctivepresentindefinite ofles

Swedish

[edit]

Adjective

[edit]

lessen

  1. alternative spelling ofledsen

Further reading

[edit]

Anagrams

[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=lessen&oldid=88222821"
Categories:
Hidden categories:
[8]ページ先頭
©2009-2025 Movatter.jp