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Soften   /sˈɑfən/  /sˈɔfən/   Listen
Soften

verb
(past & past part. softened; pres. part. softening)
1.
Make (images or sounds) soft or softer.
2.
Lessen in force or effect.  Synonyms: break, damp, dampen, weaken.  "Break a fall"
3.
Give in, as to influence or pressure.  Synonyms: relent, yield.
4.
Protect from impact.  Synonyms: buffer, cushion.
5.
Make less severe or harsh.  Synonyms: mince, moderate.
6.
Make soft or softer.
7.
Become soft or softer.



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"Soften" Quotes from Famous Books



... Esteban?" said the young girl, letting the fire of her dark eyes soften to a look of almost childish appeal—"you will help me to intercede for him? It is the restraint only that is killing him—that is goading him to madness! Think of him, Father—think of him: ruined and disgraced, ...
— The Crusade of the Excelsior • Bret Harte

... to these stories, but I have read of a Greek sage who instructed his slave that all that occurred in this world was the decree of Fate. The slave shortly after deliberately committed some offence, upon which his master commenced to soften his ribs with a stout cudgel, and when the slave pleaded that it was no fault of his, it was the decree of Fate, his master grimly replied that it was also decreed that he ...
— Flowers from a Persian Garden and Other Papers • W. A. Clouston

... which was a hundred feet above. Beneath it, in the centre of the hall, a magnificent fountain played, cooling the atmosphere to a delicious freshness with its spray. The walls and ceiling were frescoed in mellow tints, calculated to soften without absorbing the light which flooded the interior. Around the fountain was a space occupied with chairs and sofas, on which many persons were seated conversing. Legends on the walls all about the hall indicated to what classes of commodities the counters below were devoted. ...
— Looking Backward - 2000-1887 • Edward Bellamy

... stone and painted wood, a collected, towering monstrosity of rectangular and inharmonious lines, a realized dream of hideousness—but for the splendid sky, always changing and doing all that was possible in the gleams and shadows and the glowing colors of morning and evening to soften the ambitious work of man; but for the wide horizon, with patches of green shores and verdant flats washed by the kindly tide; but for the Highlands and Staten Island, the gateway to the ocean; but for the great river and the mighty bay ...
— Baddeck and That Sort of Thing • Charles Dudley Warner

... from the desk, stiffly offered them to Pinney. "Won't you carry these to your wife?" she said. This was not only a recognition of Pinney's worth in being so fond of his wife, but a vague attempt at propitiation. She thought it might somehow soften the heart of the interviewer in him, and keep him from putting anything in the paper about her. She was afraid to ask him not to ...
— The Quality of Mercy • W. D. Howells


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