weaken
Americanverb (used with object)
-
weakens,
present (3rd person singular)
-
weakened,
past participle, past
-
weakening
present participle
-
- Synonyms:
- invalidate, minimize, impair, reduce, lower, diminish, lessen, deplete, exhaust, sap, undermine, enervate, debilitate, enfeeble
- Antonyms:
- strengthen
-
Phonetics. to change (a speech sound) to an articulation requiring less effort, as from geminate to nongeminate or from stop to fricative.
verb (used without object)
-
weakens,
present (3rd person singular)
-
weakened,
past participle, past
-
weakening
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
weakensimple
-
weakenssimple
-
have weakenedperfect
-
has weakenedperfect
-
am weakeningprogressive
-
are weakeningprogressive
-
is weakeningprogressive
-
have been weakeningperfect progressive
-
has been weakeningperfect progressive
Past
-
weakenedsimple
-
had weakenedperfect
-
was weakeningprogressive
-
were weakeningprogressive
-
had been weakeningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of weaken
Explanation
To weaken is to become less powerful or strong. When a storm weakens, the wind dies down and the torrential rain becomes a light drizzle. If you weaken physically, your strength diminishes: "I did great at the start of the obstacle course, but my arms began to weaken toward the end and I couldn't climb that last wall." You can also weaken in resolve or spirit, like when your sister's criticism of your art project weakens your confidence about including it in an exhibition. This verb comes from weak and its Germanic root meaning "yield" or "soft."
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:
The researchers also identified unusual patterns in how correlations between particles weaken with increasing distance, even when the repulsive interactions are relatively weak.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
Those costs ultimately weaken investment returns and raise prices for consumers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026
Doing so would weaken the usefulness of both the commentary and the guidelines, and ultimately lead to wildly different sentences for the same crimes all depending on the judge.
From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2026
And if forward earnings estimates weaken instead, these stocks could face further pressure.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 10, 2026
You have to move—but any move will weaken your position.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
In the Pacific, the weather phenomenon weakens vertical wind shear that allows storm systems there to brew stronger.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
“It weakens the ‘no low-band’ rebuttal management teams have leaned on,” Maral wrote.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
"We are concerned that it weakens existing protections for Norfolk's nationally and globally important wildlife sites such as chalk streams, wetlands and valley fens," he added.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
Higher inflation could potentially fuel wage demands even as it squeezes corporate margins and weakens demand.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
The root system of the entire field weakens.
From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan
The dollar weakened as odds increased that the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady this month.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026
The Chargers’ offense, already weakened by a series of injuries to its offensive line and receiving corps, struggled mightily, recording their second-lowest output of the season at 259 total yards.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2026
Importantly, when the analysis additionally accounted for the total amount of red meat consumed, the relationship between Neu5Gc and diabetes weakened and was no longer statistically significant.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
She points out that fund flows toward global developed market tech funds have weakened recently and that earnings upgrades for semiconductor stocks are decelerating.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
His blue eyes with their left-sided squint, weakened by the war, had a vacant look.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
This suggests that some of the cells responsible for keeping inflammation under control may instead contribute to it, potentially weakening the body's ability to shut down the response.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 20, 2026
He said he’s seen enough overall deterioration in the market to believe the intermediate-term trend is weakening.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
“It’s not necessarily weakening demand for AI computing. But, in my mind, it’s a growing concern that CoreWeave’s enormous borrowing requirements could overwhelm its ability to generate cash and refinance debt at reasonable rates.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Isaias hit the Florida coast on Saturday as a Category 2 storm, before weakening rapidly over land.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2026
There the root borer is a serious pest of the banana, so weakening its roots that the trees are easily toppled by wind.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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