Synonyms

coarsen

American

[kawr-suhn, kohr-] / ˈkɔr sən, ˈkoʊr- /

verb (used with or without object)

to make or become coarse.

coarsen British

/ ˈkɔːsən /

verb

to make or become coarse

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of coarsen

First recorded in 1795–1805; coarse + -en ¹

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.

In today’s coarsened climate, fretting about rules of politeness seems futile.

From The Wall Street Journal

In her recent New York Times article about the "coarsening" of the religious right, Ruth Graham alluded to this, writing about the trend of evangelical leaders using "vulgarities."

From Salon

In these landscapes, naturalism and abstraction often battle to a pulsating draw by means of a magnified, or coarsened pointillism that recalls Seurat in its mosaic-like array of dots, dashes and commas.

From New York Times

In such a case, the suppression of coarsening would be beneficial.

From Science Daily

The threats are not simply an issue of coarsening of the national discourse.

From Seattle Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023