softener

American  

[saw-fuh-ner, sof-uh-] / ˈsɔ fə nər, ˈsɒf ə- /

noun

• softeners
  plural

1. Chemistry.

   1. any admixture to a substance for promoting or increasing its softness, smoothness, or plasticity.

   2. water softener.

2. a person or thing that softens.

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softener British  

/ ˈsɒfənə /

noun

1. a substance added to another substance to increase its softness, pliability, or plasticity

2. a substance, such as a zeolite, for softening water

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• softeners
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of softener

First recorded in 1600–10; soften + -er ¹

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

softener softeners

He then adds vinegar to save on additives like softener.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2025

She’d never planned to do TV or film, but when an advertising executive approached her one night after she’d performed an ensemble role in “Gypsy,” she soon booked TV ads for fabric softener and diapers.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 24, 2024

To use vinegar as a fabric softener, pour half of a cup of distilled white vinegar into the detergent or fabric softener dispenser during the final rinse cycle.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 16, 2023

Laundry detergent, fabric softener, fabric shampoo and conditioners and other cleaning products from the brand produced between January 2021 and September 2022 were recalled, the U.S.

From New York Times ● Dec. 3, 2022

My sister’s bed still smells like her—fabric softener, lavender lotion, and her warm and sweet human scent I can’t describe.

From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez

These include PFAS—or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances—to repel water and stains, formaldehyde-releasing resins to resist wrinkles, biocides to control odor, silicone softeners and dyes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

I’m using stool softeners and laxatives as well as walking and drinking water.

From Seattle Times ● May 29, 2024

Ion exchange resin is the same technology found in many home water softeners.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2024

Water softeners remove metals from water that make it better at rinsing soap from laundry and off your body when showering.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 16, 2020

All softening machines for jute, or softeners as they are often called, are similar in construction, but the number of pairs of rollers varies according to circumstances and to the opinions of managers.

From The Jute Industry: from Seed to Finished Cloth by T. Woodhouse

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