ENGLISH
REFERENCE

thicken

v.
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˈθɪkən// UK //θˈɪkən// thick·en Literary

v. to become more solid or dense. You use this when a liquid like soup or sauce gets thicker as it cooks or when a person's voice changes.

v. to become more dense, viscous, or compact in texture. Often describes the physical change of a liquid or the vocal change in a person's voice.


SIMPLE

The soup will thicken as it cools down.

CONTEXTUAL

The chef added a bit of flour to the sauce to help it thicken and coat the pasta better.

COMPLEX

As the storm approached, the atmosphere began to thicken with a sense of impending danger, making the air feel heavy and oppressive to the hikers.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Origin

From Middle English thickenen, thikkenen, perhaps from Old Norse þykkna (“to thicken”); equivalent to thick + -en. Cognate with Swedish tjockna (“to thicken”), Icelandic þykkna (“to thicken”).

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