verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Verb

1. 1
   To become great or large; increase; dilate. intransitive
2. 2
   To become great with child; become pregnant. intransitive, obsolete
3. 3
   To make great; magnify; enlarge; increase. transitive

   "one studies how how to please his prince, the other how to greaten and secure him."

Synonyms

All synonyms

aggrandizeballoonbecome pregnantbloatbroadenbulk

Antonyms

All antonyms

decreaselessen

Example

More examples

"one studies how how to please his prince, the other how to greaten and secure him."

Etymology

From Middle English gretnen (“to become great, be pregnant”), equivalent to great + -en.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.