lessen

[les-uhn] / ˈlɛs ən /

VERB

lower, reduce

Synonyms

STRONGEST

abate curtail decrease dilute diminish dwindle ease erode impair lighten minimize mitigate narrow shrink slacken taper off weaken

STRONG

abridge amputate attenuate clip close contract crop cut de-escalate decline degrade downsize drain minify moderate soft pedal taper thin truncate

WEAK

become smaller cut back die down grow less roll back slack up slow down take the bite out take the edge off take the sting out wind down

Antonyms

STRONGEST

develop enlarge expand extend grow increase intensify irritate lengthen prolong strengthen worsen

STRONG

go up rise stretch

WEAK

raise

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Japan also benefits from the push to find other sources of critical minerals and lessen reliance on China.

From Barron's • May 20, 2026

The Advancing Water Reuse Act seeks to lessen the local impacts of water-guzzling operations such as data centers, which have sparked pushback across the country amid a mass build-out to power the artificial intelligence boom.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026

“This is an opportunity to lessen that burden on the residents.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 7, 2026

"The helicopter is expected to carry out targeted water drops on the Elan Valley wildfire during the next few hours to extinguish or lessen the impacts of the fire," he said.

From BBC • Apr. 29, 2026

He’d rinsed out his clothes earlier to lessen their scent and hung them from a tree to dry.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

Vocabulary lists containing lessen

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