roughen
Americanverb (used with or without object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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roughensimple
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roughenssimple
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have roughenedperfect
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has roughenedperfect
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am rougheningprogressive
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are rougheningprogressive
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is rougheningprogressive
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have been rougheningperfect progressive
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has been rougheningperfect progressive
Past
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roughenedsimple
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had roughenedperfect
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was rougheningprogressive
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were rougheningprogressive
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had been rougheningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of roughen
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:
Red whirls on this rabbit’s tongue are filiform papillae, which roughen the tongue and help move food around the mouth.
From New York Times ● May 21, 2024
The general idea is that ground surfaces roughen after the mass movement of rocks and soil, so that landslide deposits are the roughest right after the landslide occurs and become smoother over time.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 7, 2023
The goal is to roughen up the surface so the paint adheres to the old polyurethane coat.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 2, 2022
“If you’re going out, I would apply Conformist Hair Paste to roughen up the texture,” he says.
From Forbes ● Jun. 10, 2014
If we roughen a corn stalk with sand-paper we may sharpen a knife upon it.
From The Elements of Agriculture A Book for Young Farmers, with Questions Prepared for the Use of Schools by Waring, George E. (George Edwin)
Wells has a deep, oaky baritone that roughens to a grumble in its lower register.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 4, 2019
Such difference there is in tongues that the same figure which roughens one, gives majesty to another; and that was it which Virgil studied in his verses.
From Discourses on Satire and on Epic Poetry by Dryden, John
As a general rule, pain, especially if it be mental, hardens and roughens the character.
From My Path to Atheism by Besant, Annie Wood
He undulates the surface, he raises it in hills, scoops it into vallies, and roughens it with rocks.
The eye should be cleanly cut, or it roughens the thread.
From Embroidery and Tapestry Weaving by Christie, Grace
Auto-tune aside, fans will notice that Thorn's voice has deepened and roughened.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2023
“It wasn’t looked at being this roughened type of scenario. It was an offering with very strong comforts of home while you still were able to enjoy the outdoors with your family.”
From New York Times ● Aug. 28, 2022
To achieve the shells’ luminous surfaces, Utzon covered them with more than a million handcrafted ceramic tiles, their surfaces roughened by trace amounts of crushed stone, a technique inspired by Japanese pottery.
From New York Times ● Aug. 2, 2021
He sang his conversational lyrics in a voice roughened by a hard-luck life, particularly after throat cancer left him with a disfigured jaw.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 7, 2020
The edges of the pages were slightly roughened, and the paper was still so pale that every letter stood out clear and black.
From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke
Though it may seem counterintuitive, roughening a ball’s surface delays the separation of the boundary layer and keeps a ball in turbulent flow longer.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 19, 2022
“When I close my eyes, I can still feel that moment,” said the other daughter, Samia, her voice roughening as her eyes filled with tears.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2022
Instead he interprets traditional Yolngu chants, raising and roughening his gentle voice while a Western orchestra plays churning, minimalist accompaniments around him.
From New York Times ● Jul. 13, 2018
Wilmington’s Council had been closing shortfalls of 5 percent to 10 percent for several years, and the compounding effect was roughening the edges of a city that aggressively marketed its coastal quality of life.
From New York Times ● Jul. 5, 2011
My throat began to ache and my voice dropped, roughening into a deep crackle, as if my vocal cords had turned to sandpaper.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
