deepen

Verb

deepen (third-person singular simple present deepens, present participle deepening, simple past and past participle deepened)

1. (transitive) To make deep or deeper
   • They deepened the well by 200 feet.
2. (transitive) To make darker or more intense; to darken
   • The event deepened the prevailing gloom.
3. (transitive) To make more poignant or affecting; to increase in degree
   • News of her death deepened my sorrow.
4. (transitive) To make lower in tone
   • The tuner deepened the tone of the organ.
5. (transitive) To make more thorough or extensive.
   • The class deepened my understanding of the subject.
   • The AIDS crisis changes day by day, and the pamphlet was completed a year ago. Much remains to be deepened and updated: we recognize that, and would welcome discussion.1988 February 21, Nancy Krieger, Rose Appleman, “Knee-jerk Anti-communism”, in Gay Community News, volume 15, number 31, page 4
6. (transitive) To make more intimate.
   • The shared experiences deepened our relationship.
7. (transitive) To make more sound or heavy.
   • The hypnotist then proceeded to deepen his trance.
8. (intransitive) To become deeper
   • The water deepens as you go toward the middle of the channel.
9. (intransitive) To become darker or more intense
   • The crisis deepened in the following weeks.
   • We may be pardoned our nostalgia, those of us who can remember the old days, the days before the grouping and before standardisation, when we see, as today we see so often, the derelict and abandoned buildings of what were once railway stations, for the life which they used to enjoy we lived with...1953 April, Henry Maxwell, “Abandoned Railway Stations”, in Railway Magazine, page 270
10. (intransitive) To become lower in tone
    • His voice deepened with age.
11. (intransitive) To become more thorough or extensive.
    • His skill in deciphering the texts deepened with practice.
12. (intransitive) To become more intimate.
    • The conversation deepened and they began to truly share.
    • He's in the process of breaking up with one boyfriend, who refuses to let their relationship deepen, and courting another, who promises to be somebody with whom he could grow old.2001, Susan Stryker, Queer Pulp, page 104
13. (intransitive) To become more sound or heavy.
    • The new bed allowed my sleep to deepen.