Coarsen (Verb)
Meaning 1
Make or become coarse or coarser; "coarsen the surface"; "Their minds coarsened".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The harsh environment would coarsen even the most gentle of souls over time.
- Excessive use of abrasive materials can coarsen the surface of polished instruments.
- Repeating the same task over and over can eventually coarsen one's skills and make them less refined.
- A lifetime of manual labor would often coarsen a person's hands and make them less sensitive to touch.
- Being constantly exposed to inappropriate language can coarsen children's perception of what is and is not acceptable in conversation.
Hypernyms
Meaning 2
Make less subtle or refined; "coarsen one's ideals".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- Years of living in poverty seemed to coarsen her appreciation for the finer things in life.
- She felt that years of bureaucracy had coarsened the compassion and caring of social workers.
- Time can coarsen one's ideals and make the person more practical but often less visionary.
- His aggressive behavior seemed to coarsen the once gentle atmosphere of the community center.
- The experience of war left him feeling jaded and had started to coarsen the poet's love for beauty.