darken

[dahr-kuh n] /ˈdɑr kən/
verb (used with object)
1.
to make dark or darker.
2.
to make obscure.
3.
to make less white or clear in color.
4.
to make gloomy; sadden:
He darkened the festivities by his presence.
5.
to make blind.
verb (used without object)
6.
to become dark or darker.
7.
to become obscure.
8.
to become less white or clear in color.
9.
to grow clouded, as with gloom or anger.
10.
to become blind.
Idioms
11.
darken someone's door, to come to visit; make an appearance:
Never darken my door again!
Origin
1250-1300; Middle English derknen. See dark, -en1
Related forms
darkener, noun
undarken, verb (used with object)
well-darkened, adjective
Synonyms
4. depress, dispirit, blacken, deject.
Examples from the web for darken
  • But the night has crept into my heart, and begun to darken my eyes.
  • Because the app knows what is background and what is foreground, it can darken or lighten them separately.
  • Thus, an apparently benign market environment can darken quite suddenly as a country approaches its debt-ceiling.
  • And in place of having blinds, the windows darken at the touch of a button, which should keep the kids amused.
  • When it lands on snow it can significantly darken it, so that glaciers absorb more sunlight and are warmed.
  • When they sense danger, octopuses shoot out ink to darken the water and hide themselves.
  • In time, they thicken and darken and may grow little bumps that bleed.
  • The circles under her eyes darken, the general pallor increases.
  • For wary investors, back-to-back storms darken the gloom.
  • It would be best to darken the room and have a fairly sharp beam of light.
British Dictionary definitions for darken

darken

/ˈdɑːkən/
verb
1.
to make or become dark or darker
2.
to make or become gloomy, angry, or sad: his mood darkened
3.
(usually used with a negative) darken someone's door, to visit someone: never darken my door again!
Derived Forms
darkener, noun
Word Origin and History for darken
v.

c. 1300, "to make dark;" late 14c., "to become dark," from dark (adj.) + -en (1). The more usual verb in Middle English was simply dark, as it is in Chaucer and Shakespeare, and darken did not predominate until 17c. The Anglo-Saxons also had a verb sweorcan meaning "to grow dark." To darken someone's door (usually with a negative) is attested from 1729.