intensifying

Becoming more extreme

Intensifying means making something stronger, more extreme, or more acute.

Pain intensifies, conflicts intensify, storms intensify.

As an adjective, intensifying describes words that amplify meaning: in "very cold" or "absolutely ridiculous," *very* and *absolutely* are intensifying adverbs.

The fighting has been intensifying for weeks.

escalating

heightening

Increasing in degree

amplifyingIncreasing strength or intensity
increasingBecoming greater in amount
worseningBecoming more severe

accelerating · exacerbating · compounding · deepening · surging · snowballing · multiplying · expanding · aggravating · spiking

strengthening

reinforcing

Making more robust

fortifyingMaking stronger or sturdier
consolidatingCombining dispersed elements
solidifyingBecoming rigid or fixed

bolstering · hardening · boosting · enhancing · empowering · invigorating · energizing · augmenting · galvanizing · steeling

Categories

increasesincrease, rise, gain, boost, hike
amplifyingboosting, magnifying, heightening, strengthening, escalating
flavor changessweetening, souring, bitterness, saltiness, mellowing
actingacting, act, performing, playacting, actor
growthgrowth, grow, growing, growth rate, increase
cooking techniquessear, simmering, boiling, frying, saute

Opposites

strength/force trajectory

intensifyingweakening

Becoming less strong

diminishing · lessening · abating · decreasing · reducing

emotional/experiential impact

intensifyingsoothing

Reducing distress or discomfort

calming · alleviating · mitigating · dulling · numbing

rhetorical/linguistic function

intensifyingdownplaying

Diminishing perceived significance

understating · minimizing · softening · hedging · qualifying

Family

intense, tense, tension, intensity, intensify, intensive, intensified, intensively, tensile

Familiarity: Top 200,000
Profile: Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Abstract · Everyday, not technical · Rated G