enhancement
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
- self-enhancement noun
Etymology
Origin of enhancement
Explanation
An enhancement makes something better. An enhancement to your recipe makes it taste better. An enhancement to your outfit makes it look snappier. An enhancement to your camera lens makes it take clearer photos. The noun enhancement comes from the verb enhance, meaning "to increase or improve," and it can describe anything that's an improvement to the quality or value of something. People might make surgical enhancements to their faces and bodies to make themselves look better — otherwise known as plastic surgery — although this type of enhancement that is somewhat controversial. Those who do it believe it's an enhancement to their quality of life, since they feel better about themselves.
Vocabulary lists containing enhancement
Vocabulary from "There Will Never Be an Age of Artificial Intimacy," by Sherry Turkle
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The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
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Lessons 2–3
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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.
By combining adjustable optical enhancement with precise spatial control in a van der Waals-compatible system, Mie-void heterostructures offer a powerful new platform for working with atomically thin materials.
From Science Daily • Mar. 24, 2026
It refers to ginning up the gene pool through tools like gene editing and A.I. enhancement, the argument being that manipulating genes can make us better, faster, smarter.
From Slate • Mar. 19, 2026
Experts warned that the line between enhancement and content generation, accidentally or intentionally, was a thin one.
From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026
But a blood enhancement chemical reagent uncovered a footwear mark and drag mark on the floor.
From BBC • Mar. 7, 2026
“Ingestible Knowledge isn’t just a theory, Dr. Blackbridge. Cognitive enhancement through the bloodstream is possible! This boy is proof! Living proof! I did it.”
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
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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.