magnify
Americanverb (used with object)
-
magnifies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
magnified,
past participle, past
-
magnifying
present participle
-
to increase the apparent size of, as a lens does.
- Antonyms:
- reduce
-
to make greater in actual size; enlarge.
to magnify a drawing in preparing for a fresco.
- Antonyms:
- reduce
-
to cause to seem greater or more important; attribute too much importance to; exaggerate.
to magnify one's difficulties.
- Synonyms:
- overstate
- Antonyms:
- minimize
-
to make more exciting; intensify; dramatize; heighten.
The playwright magnified the conflict to get her point across.
-
Archaic. to extol; praise.
to magnify the Lord.
verb (used without object)
-
magnifies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
magnified,
past participle, past
-
magnifying
present participle
verb
-
to increase, cause to increase, or be increased in apparent size, as through the action of a lens, microscope, etc
-
to exaggerate or become exaggerated in importance
don't magnify your troubles
-
rare (tr) to increase in actual size
-
archaic (tr) to glorify
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
overmagnifyverb (used with object)
-
remagnifyverb (used with object)
-
magnifiableadjective
-
unmagnifiedadjective
-
unmagnifyingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
magnifysimple
-
magnifiessimple
-
have magnifiedperfect
-
has magnifiedperfect
-
am magnifyingprogressive
-
are magnifyingprogressive
-
is magnifyingprogressive
-
have been magnifyingperfect progressive
-
has been magnifyingperfect progressive
Past
-
magnifiedsimple
-
had magnifiedperfect
-
was magnifyingprogressive
-
were magnifyingprogressive
-
had been magnifyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of magnify
1350–1400; Middle English magnifien < Latin magnificāre. See magni-, -fy
Explanation
To magnify is to make something bigger, whether in size or in significance. A magnifying glass makes things look bigger and when anything is magnified, it gets larger in some way. If your hunger is magnified, you've gotten hungrier. Wearing a heavy coat on a hot day will magnify the heat: you're feeling hotter and hotter. Also, non-physical things get magnified. The press could magnify a story by discussing it over and over, making it a bigger story than it was originally. All types of magnifying make things bigger.
Vocabulary lists containing magnify
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That's Great!: Magn
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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.
See Examples For:
“Or we can see if there’s anything we can save in the next four to five years to reduce our expenses, be a little more modest in spending. That could magnify quite a bit.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026
The researchers say dietary sugar may magnify the microbiome disruption caused by antibiotics because potentially harmful bacteria that survive treatment may be able to use those sugars to expand.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
"There is nothing that blood testing can do that would magically take those worries away - it would only potentially magnify them," Jones said.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
This borrowing, known as fund-level debt, can magnify investors’ losses on bad bets and could even create risks for banks in a severe downturn, industry analysts say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
The spectacles have good lenses that magnify things: when I try them on, even French words look large and easy to read.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
The S&P 500 is weighted by market capitalization, which magnifies the effect of this year’s gains for some of its largest companies.
From MarketWatch ● May 20, 2026
“The Tristan Project” — created by video artist Bill Viola, director Peter Sellars and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Disney in 2004 — magnifies the rituals of life and death.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
As in all sports novels, climbing offers the characters a framework for living, and Mr. Tallent magnifies every aspect of its metaphoric potential.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
In Janus materials, the strong coupling between layers magnifies this effect, allowing even extremely small forces to produce measurable strain.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 14, 2025
As I turn the dial, my view through the telescope magnifies.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
The Dodgers’ performance against the Brewers’ bullpen on Monday magnified how much the star-powered lineup hasn’t been clicking with Shohei Ohtani struggling at the plate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
This year's winning video was magnified to 100 times in size, and featured tiny hair-like structures, called cilia, in the airways of a child with a rare genetic disease.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Conversely, declines in valuations of mortgage-backed securities are magnified when interest rates are rising.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026
“Any supply disruption, you know, has a magnified impact because there’s no cushion,” said Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
Then I magnified both images on my display and studied every micrometer.
From "Ready Player One: A Novel" by Ernest Cline
Perpetual futures trade around the clock and allow traders to use leverage, magnifying potential profits and losses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2026
When you look at films like that under a magnifying glass, they tend to fall apart.
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
But on the edge of town, engineers peer through giant magnifying glasses while robotic arms manipulate sheets of copper to develop components used in some of the world's most advanced AI systems.
From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026
You should not use binoculars, telescopes or the viewfinder of a camera even with your eclipse glasses on, because their magnifying effect can nullify the protection of the glasses and damage your sight.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
I stand there with the star in my hand not sure what to do until he turns back around and says, “You coming or what? I brought an extra magnifying glass for you.”
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
