Word Type

Verb

The word "soften" can be used as a verb.

Word Relationships

Opposites (Antonyms)

harden sharpen

Derived Terms

soften someone's cough soften the blow soften the ground soften up soften up the ground softener unsoftenable unsoftened unsoftening

Derived From

soft

Broader Terms (Hypernyms)

accept alter blunt change change intensity consent deaden go for modify

Narrower Terms (Hyponyms)

melt sloom thaw

Manner Of

change change intensity

Related Terms

mollify neshen soft softness

Related Terms

harsh mollify morale neshen soft softer undermine

Synonym Network

cushion dampen mince yield

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