heighten
To make something stronger or more serious.
To make something greater in strength, intensity, importance, or likelihood.
To make something taller or higher.
To increase the height of something by raising or adding to it.
To make a sound, color, or taste stronger.
To make a sensory quality such as sound, color, taste, or smell stronger or more noticeable.
To make something sound more dramatic than it is.
To make something seem more extreme, dramatic, or significant than it really is, especially to produce a particular effect.
- Base: heighten
- 3rd Person Singular: heightens
- Present Participle: heightening
- Past: heightened
heighten awareness
1increase public knowledge or attention
To help people notice or understand something more.
- The campaign aims to heighten awareness of mental health at work.
- Training sessions can heighten awareness of unconscious bias.
- The documentary heightened awareness of the impact of microplastics.
- This video heightens awareness of road safety.
heighten tensions
1make conflict feel more serious
To make a conflict more tense.
- The border incident heightened tensions between the two countries.
- A sudden price hike can heighten tensions between management and staff.
- His angry reply heightened tensions in the meeting.
- The argument heightened tensions.
heighten the drama
1make a situation more dramatic
To make something more dramatic.
- The director heightens the drama with sudden cuts and close-ups.
- Don’t heighten the drama—just tell me what happened.
- The article heightens the drama by focusing on the most emotional details.
- The movie heightens the drama.
heighten the sense of (something)
1make a particular feeling stronger
To make a feeling stronger.
- The silence heightened the sense of unease in the room.
- The narrow streets heighten the sense of history in the old town.
- Keeping the lights low heightened the sense of intimacy.
- The music heightened the sense of danger.
heighten the stakes
1make the consequences more important
To make a situation more risky or important.
- Adding a time limit heightens the stakes and forces faster decisions.
- The company’s new rival has heightened the stakes in the market.
- The sequel heightens the stakes by putting the main character’s family in danger.
- The deadline heightens the stakes.