amplify
Americanverb (used with object)
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amplifies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
amplified,
past participle, past
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amplifying
present participle
-
to make larger, greater, or stronger; enlarge; extend.
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to expand in stating or describing, as by details or illustrations; clarify by expanding.
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Electricity. to increase the amplitude of; cause amplification in.
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Archaic. to exaggerate.
verb (used without object)
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amplifies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
amplified,
past participle, past
-
amplifying
present participle
verb
-
(tr) to increase in size, extent, effect, etc, as by the addition of extra material; augment; enlarge; expand
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electronics to produce amplification of (electrical signals); increase the amplitude of (signals)
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(tr) to exaggerate
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(intr) to expand or enlarge a speech, narrative, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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amplifysimple
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amplifiessimple
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have amplifiedperfect
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has amplifiedperfect
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am amplifyingprogressive
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are amplifyingprogressive
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is amplifyingprogressive
-
have been amplifyingperfect progressive
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has been amplifyingperfect progressive
Past
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amplifiedsimple
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had amplifiedperfect
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was amplifyingprogressive
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were amplifyingprogressive
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had been amplifyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of amplify
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English amplifyen, from Middle French amplifier, from Latin amplificāre “to increase, augment”; equivalent to ample + -ify
Explanation
The verb amplify means to crank up the volume. Speakers amplify, or raise, the volume of the noise coming through a microphone so that everyone at the rock show can hear. Amplify comes from the Old French word amplifier meaning "to enlarge or expand." It refers to making a sound “expand,” but it can also crank up something like a disagreement — if you spread rumors, you might amplify an argument. It can “enlarge” an idea — if you don't realize how bad your health is, your doctor might amplify your test results by explaining them to you in simple, and possibly frightening terms.
Vocabulary lists containing amplify
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The Hate U Give
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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:
“Rising energy prices amid resilient macro data amplify headwinds for bond markets after key levels were taken out,” Christoph Rieger, head of rates and credit research at Commerzbank, said in a note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Kudler says the isolation of being aboard a ship, with moments of prolonged boredom followed by "extreme alertness", can amplify mental-health struggles.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Increased monitoring and more advanced disease tracking can also amplify the sense that something new is afoot, even if it was always there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
After collecting the cells, the team removes the material from the brushes and uses forensic-level, next-generation sequencing technologies to isolate and amplify genetic sequences.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
“Baby, look. You’re grieving, okay? That can amplify your emotions and make you feel things you haven’t felt in a long time. Even if you do have feelings for Khalil, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
His intentional balance of silence and audio amplifies one of the movie’s most famous moments, Adenoid Hynkel’s gibberish speech, into a bombastic, hilarious aural onslaught.
From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026
“Workers see the headlines, hear about their friends. Crucially they hear about workers having incredibly hard times getting back into jobs, which amplifies the risk of being laid off,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
“This amplifies stock price volatility tremendously, both on the uptrend and in drawdowns as margin calls force selling by investors,” analyst Jing Jie Yu said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
That nitric oxide can then promote S-nitrosylation of STING, which drives even more inflammation and further amplifies the process.
From Science Daily ● May 31, 2026
The words echo around the square and beyond as the mike amplifies my voice.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
When Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass amplified the results last week of a favorable political poll that turned out to be fake, she was inadvertently following in the footsteps of conservative Detroit singer Kid Rock.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
"Loud amplified music late into the evening will disrupt sleep for those who have no choice but to remain at home," she added.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
While investors often hedge risk by holding “long” positions that certain stocks will rise as well as “short” positions that others will fall, Situational’s longs and shorts amplified a bet on a single theme.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
He articulated very clearly his confidence in the AI boom and amplified returns by using leverage.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
During this period, the initial non-uniformities would have been amplified until they were big enough to explain the origin of the structures we observe around us.
From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking
“AI is amplifying the value of our entire platform,” Robin Washington, chief financial and chief operating officer at Salesforce, told MarketWatch.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
The tabloid Daily Mail's Sarah Vine blamed social media for amplifying the story.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
Kairi’s scenes are often accompanied by the powerful score from composer Yoko Shimomura, amplifying the emotion that has driven the games’ fanbase for more than two decades.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026
Investigators had searched the night before, amplifying speculation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
Something had happened then, some development in evolution, to make the human brain an ideal channel for amplifying their effects.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
