20 Advanced English Verbs for Change That Replace Vague Speech
A subtle shift in circumstances often demands a precise verb. To ravage describes a destructive raid during wartime rather than general damage, while to detract captures the exact act of taking a part away from a whole to diminish it. To condense specifies a physical shift from gas to liquid, naming a process that generic terms leave vague.
Every word from the collection can be added to Memorabit, which delivers reminders at unexpected moments of the day. The complete table of twenty verbs follows below.
| Word | Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| align | place in a line or arrange so as to be parallel or straight | We can use braces to align your teeth better.Tatoeba #8657061 by AlanF_US |
| complicate | make more complicated | I complicate my own life.Tatoeba #13047529 by Nuel |
| fade | become less clearly visible or distinguishable; disappear gradually or seemingly | We fade to grey.Tatoeba #13131396 by sacredceltic |
| flatten | make flat or flatter | We need to flatten the curve.Tatoeba #8616890 by Hybrid |
| specialize | become more focused on an area of activity or field of study | I specialize in medieval history.Tatoeba #259445 by CM |
| detract | take away a part from; diminish | I hope that her success doesn't detract from theirs.Tatoeba #11535846 by letsgolanguages |
| darken | become dark or darker | The sky started to darken.Tatoeba #5565100 by Hybrid |
| ravage | make a pillaging or destructive raid on (a place), as in wartimes | War, disease, and famine continue to ravage the poverty-stricken country, despite the decades-long international effort to ameliorate the situation.Tatoeba #5499396 by mailohilohi |
| intensify | increase in extent or intensity | The doctors want to intensify the treatments.Tatoeba #5250560 by Joseph |
| vanish | get lost, as without warning or explanation | Algeria will not vanish.Tatoeba #8571625 by Amastan |
| integrate | make into a whole or make part of a whole | They refuse to integrate.Tatoeba #6045782 by mailohilohi |
| mutate | undergo mutation | The virus is starting to mutate.Tatoeba #1111626 by Scott |
| harden | become hard or harder | Don't let life harden your heart.Tatoeba #10541752 by Adelpa |
| erupt | start abruptly | I'd like to see a volcano erupt.Tatoeba #10580360 by felidad |
| emigrate | leave one's country of residence for a new one | People emigrate for many reasons.Tatoeba #11489639 by Amastan |
| freshen | make (to feel) fresh | I'll go freshen up.Tatoeba #6023616 by Hybrid |
| modernize | make repairs, renovations, revisions or adjustments to | We need to modernize our system.Tatoeba #9502831 by CK |
| condense | undergo condensation; change from a gaseous to a liquid state and fall in drops | It's hard to condense this into a short article.Tatoeba #10232577 by Amastan |
| devalue | remove the value from; deprive of its value | All you do is devalue me as a person.Tatoeba #10624281 by felidad |
| destabilize | become unstable | They want to destabilize civilization.Tatoeba #11449819 by Amastan |