brighten

Word family

bright·en /ˈbraɪtn/ verb

1 make lighter 使更明亮 [transitiveT] (also brighten something ↔ up)BRIGHT to make something lighter or brighter 使更明亮；使更鲜艳

Use blonde highlights to brighten your hair.

用点金色的挑染，让你的发色明亮起来。

The morning sunshine brightened up the room.

清晨的阳光照亮了房间。

2 make more attractive 使更漂亮 [transitiveT] (also brighten something ↔ up) to make something more colourful or attractive 使更艳丽；使更漂亮

She bought some flowers to brighten the room.

她买了一些花，把房间装点得亮丽生色。

I want to brighten the place up a bit.

我想把这个地方装饰一下。

3 make more enjoyable 使更有趣 [transitiveT] (also brighten something ↔ up) to make something more enjoyable, exciting, or interesting 使更开心，使更有趣

His letter brightened my day.

他的来信让我开心了一天。

I felt I needed something to brighten up my life.

我感到我需要什么东西来刺激一下我的生活。

4 BRIGHTbecome lighter/brighter 变得更亮 [intransitiveI] to shine more strongly, or become brighter in colour 变灿烂，变明亮

The stage lights brightened to reveal a street scene.

舞台灯光亮起，现出一道街景。

5 become sunny 变晴朗 [intransitiveI] (also brighten up) if the weather brightens, the sun begins to shine and it becomes lighter 放晴

The sky brightened after lunch.

午饭后，天空放晴了。

Let’s hope the weather brightens up later.

希望过会儿天气会转晴。

It brightened up a bit in the afternoon.

到了下午，天色亮了一点。

6 become happy 变开心 [intransitiveI] (also brighten up)HAPPY to become happier or more excited 变开心

His eyes brightened when we started talking about money.

我们一谈到钱，他的眼睛就亮了。

She brightened up a bit when she saw us.

她看到我们便开心了一点。

Examples from the Corpus

brighten• He looked at his watch to find that it was 0228, but still the sky had not begun to brighten.• This brightens and hardens the surface of cutlery so it becomes more resistant to wear and it also removes minor scratches.• At his name, James Whitaker, royal correspondent of the Mirror, brightened as though you had changed his batteries.• The political situation has brightened in recent months.• I read an article in the paper that brightened my day.• Won't that brighten the neighborhood!• Fireworks brightened the sky.• His eyes brightened through his rimless glasses.• Julie brightened up at the thought of visiting home.• But neighbours say it brightens up the area and they want it to stay.• New curtains would brighten up the room.• Flowers are one way to brighten your surroundings.

bright·en verb

Chinese

Syllable

Corpus