lighten up

Idioms  

1. Become or cause to become less serious or gloomy, and more cheerful. For example, Lighten up, Sam—it'll turn out all right. This slangy expression transfers reducing a physical weight to a change of mood or attitude.

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Example Sentences

That isn’t to say that trading activity doesn’t lighten up during the summer months.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 29, 2026

If individual investors and large institutions collectively decide to lighten up on their dollars, it will leave a mark.

From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026

Or did the embrace of “Rocky” and “Jaws” mean that audiences wanted their movies to lighten up?

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

The storms that battered the Hill Country for the last four days began to lighten up, although isolated pockets of heavy rain were still possible.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 9, 2025

I felt as if I were gazing into the future: Aunt Kitty looked like a cranky old matron, which was exactly what she was headed for if she didn’t start to lighten up.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Related Words

• acquiesce
• capitulate
• cave in
• come around
• comply
• ease off
• give in
• give up
• let go
• quit
• relax
• slacken
• soften
• subside