weaken

English

Etymology

From weak +‎ -en.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈwikən/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːkən

Verb

weaken (third-person singular simple present weakens, present participle weakening, simple past and past participle weakened)

1. (transitive) To make weaker or less strong.

   weaken a bond

   weaken a joint

2. (intransitive) To become weaker or less strong.

   Over the years my enthusiasm for the job has weakened.

   • 1958, President Dwight Eisenhower, 3:06 from the start, in President Eisenhower Speaks On The Formosa Situation (1958)‎^[1], British Pathé:

     My friends, we are confronted with a serious situation. But it is typical of the security problems of the world today. Powerful and aggressive forces are constantly probing, now here, now there, to see whether the free world is weakened. In the face of this, there are no easy choices available. It is misleading for anyone to imply that there are. However, the present situation, though serious, is by no means desperate or hopeless.

Derived terms

• weaken up

Translations

to make weaker

• Azerbaijani: zəiflətmək
• Belarusian: аслабля́ць (aslabljácʹ), асла́біць (aslábicʹ)
• Bulgarian: ослабям (bg) (oslabjam), правя слаб (pravja slab)
• Catalan: debilitar (ca), afeblir (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 削弱 (zh) (xuēruò), 減弱 / 减弱 (zh) (jiǎnruò)

• Czech: oslabit
• Dutch: verzwakken (nl)
• Finnish: heikentää (fi)
• French: affaiblir (fr)
• German: schwächen (de), abschwächen (de)
• Hebrew: החליש m (hechlish)
• Hungarian: gyengít (hu)
• Italian: indebolire (it), spossare (it)
• Japanese: 弱くする (yowaku suru)
• Latin: debilito, infirmo, labefactō, ēnervō
• Latvian: vājināt
• Malagasy: manalemy (mg)
• Maori: whakaeo, whakaruhi, whakamakuhane, whakangoikore, whakaiwikore, tāmōmō
• Old English: untrumian
• Polish: osłabiać (pl) impf, osłabić (pl) pf
• Portuguese: enfraquecer (pt)
• Russian: ослабля́ть (ru) impf (oslabljátʹ), осла́бить (ru) pf (oslábitʹ)
• Sanskrit: जासयति (sa) (jāsayati)
• Scottish Gaelic: lagaich
• Spanish: debilitar (es), languir
• Swahili: dhii (sw)
• Swedish: försvaga (sv)
• Turkish: dayanıksızlaştırmak, güçsüzleştirmek (tr), kuvvetsizleştirmek, zayıflatmak (tr)
• Ukrainian: посла́блювати impf (poslábljuvaty), послабля́ти impf (poslabljáty) (rare), посла́бити pf (poslábyty)
• Zazaki: taqet ra finen

to become weaker

• Aromanian: slãghescu
• Azerbaijani: zəifləmək (az)
• Bulgarian: отслабвам (bg) (otslabvam)
• Catalan: debilitar-se, afeblir-se (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 削弱 (zh) (xuēruò), 減弱 / 减弱 (zh) (jiǎnruò)

• Dutch: verzwakken (nl)
• Finnish: heikentyä (fi), heiketä (fi)
• French: s’affaiblir (fr)
• Galician: desfalecer (gl), esmorecer (gl)
• German: schwächeln (de)
• Hungarian: gyengül (hu)
• Ido: debileskar (io)
• Italian: indebolirsi (it)
• Japanese: 弱くなる (yowaku naru), 衰える (ja) (otoroeru), 弱気になる (yowaki ni naru)
• Latin: infirmor
• Maori: kōngenge, ngongohe, taero
• Mongolian: сулрах (mn) (sulrax)
• Old English: untrumian
• Polish: słabnąć (pl) impf, osłabnąć (pl) pf, bezsilnieć impf (dated, rare)
• Portuguese: enfraquecer (pt)
• Romanian: slăbi (ro)
• Russian: слабе́ть (ru) impf (slabétʹ), ослабева́ть (ru) impf (oslabevátʹ), ослабе́ть (ru) pf (oslabétʹ), осла́бнуть (ru) pf (oslábnutʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: lagaich
• Spanish: debilitarse (es), languecer, languidecer (es)
• Swedish: försvagas (sv), mattas (sv)
• Turkish: dayanıksızlaşmak (tr), güçsüzleşmek (tr), kuvvetsizleşmek, zayıflamak (tr)
• Ukrainian: сла́бнути impf (slábnuty), сла́бшати impf (slábšaty), слабі́ти impf (slabíty), ослаба́ти impf (oslabáty) (rare), осла́бнути pf (oslábnuty), осла́бти pf (oslábty), посла́блюватися impf (poslábljuvatysja), посла́битися pf (poslábytysja)