verb
Meaning 1
To lift, raise up.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
enhance
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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Received-Pronunciation, Southern-England: /ɪnˈhɑːns/
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Received-Pronunciation, Southern-England: /ɛnˈhɑːns/
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UK: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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General-American: /ɪnˈhæns/
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General-American: /ɛnˈhæns/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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Northern-England, Scotland: /ɪnˈhans/
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Northern-England, Scotland: /ɛnˈhans/
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rhymes with -ɑːns
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rhymes with -æns
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CMU ARPABET: EH0 N HH AE1 N S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
verb
Meaning 2
To augment or make something greater.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 3
To improve something by adding features.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 4
To be raised up; to grow larger.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
Examples
- A debt enhances rapidly by compound interest.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 5
To take up contrast agent (for an organ, tissue, or lesion).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: medicine, radiology, sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 6
increase
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- This will enhance your enjoyment
- heighten the tension
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: heighten, raise
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: intensify, compound, heighten, deepen
Narrower terms: potentiate
verb
Meaning 7
make better or more attractive
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- This sauce will enhance the flavor of the meat
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: better, improve, amend, ameliorate, meliorate
Narrower terms: follow up, touch up, retouch
History
Etymology
From Middle English enhauncen, anhaunsen, from Anglo-Norman anhauncer (“enhance, raise”), from Vulgar Latin *inaltiāre (“raise”), derived from Latin in + altus (“high”). The /h/ in Old French was taken from haut (“high”), where it resulted from Frankish influence.
Across languages
Translations
81 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: увелича́вам (uveličávam) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Bulgarian: повишавам (povišavam) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Catalan: augmentar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Dutch: vergroten — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Dutch: uitbreiden — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Esperanto: pliigi — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Finnish: parantaa — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- French: augmenter — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- French: accroître — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- German: erhöhen — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- German: vergrößern — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- German: ergänzen — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- German: verstärken — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: accrescere — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: intensificare — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: incrementare — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: avanzare — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: sviluppare — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: rafforzare — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Italian: favorire — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Macedonian: уве́личи (uvéliči) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Macedonian: увели́чува (uvelíčuva) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Māori: whakamarohi — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Māori: whakangako — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Middle English: enhauncen — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Persian: بهتر کردن (behtar kardan) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Polish: usprawnić — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Polish: polepszyć — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Polish: ulepszyć — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Portuguese: aumentar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: увели́чивать (uvelíčivatʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: увели́чить (uvelíčitʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: повыша́ть (povyšátʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: повы́сить (povýsitʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: уси́ливать (usílivatʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Russian: уси́лить (usílitʹ) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Spanish: embonar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Spanish: jerarquizar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Spanish: acrecentar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Spanish: aventajar — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Turkish: artırmak — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Ukrainian: збільшувати (zbilʹšuvaty) — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Volapük: geilükumön — augment or make something greater — see also augment, boost, upgrade, improve, develop, potentiate
- Bulgarian: подобря́вам (podobrjávam) — improve something by adding features
- Catalan: millorar — improve something by adding features
- Chinese Mandarin: 改善 (gǎishàn) — improve something by adding features
- Dutch: uitbreiden — improve something by adding features
- Dutch: verbeteren — improve something by adding features
- Esperanto: plibonigi — improve something by adding features
- Finnish: parantaa — improve something by adding features
- French: améliorer — improve something by adding features
- German: verbessern — improve something by adding features
- German: meliorisieren — improve something by adding features
- Italian: migliorare — improve something by adding features
- Italian: arricchire — improve something by adding features
- Italian: potenziare — improve something by adding features
- Italian: progredire — improve something by adding features
- Italian: valorizzare — improve something by adding features
- Macedonian: по́добри (pódobri) — improve something by adding features
- Māori: whakarākai — improve something by adding features
- Māori: whakarāwai — improve something by adding features
- Māori: whakangako — improve something by adding features
- Persian: اضافه کردن (ezâfe kardan) — improve something by adding features
- Persian: افزودن (afzudan) — improve something by adding features
- Polish: poprawiać — improve something by adding features
- Polish: poprawić — improve something by adding features
- Polish: polepszać — improve something by adding features
- Polish: polepszyć — improve something by adding features
- Polish: rozszerzyć — improve something by adding features
- Portuguese: melhorar — improve something by adding features
- Russian: улучша́ть (ulučšátʹ) — improve something by adding features
- Russian: улу́чшить (ulúčšitʹ) — improve something by adding features
- Spanish: realzar — improve something by adding features
- Spanish: embonar — improve something by adding features
- Spanish: jerarquizar — improve something by adding features
- Spanish: aventajar — improve something by adding features
- Swedish: förbättra — improve something by adding features
- Turkish: geliştirmek — improve something by adding features
- Turkish: iyileştirmek — improve something by adding features
- Ukrainian: покращувати (pokraščuvaty) — improve something by adding features
- Volapük: gudükumön — improve something by adding features
Real reading context