Strengthening

'strɛŋθənɪŋ

verb (gerund or present participle)medium📊CommonGeneral
1 meaning3 questions

Definitions

1

The process of becoming or making something stronger.

'strɛŋθənɪŋ

verb (gerund or present participle)neutralmedium
General

The act of making something stronger.

The city is investing in infrastructure strengthening to prepare for future disasters.

💡 Simply: Imagine you're trying to lift a really heavy box. Strengthening is like adding more muscles or getting a stronger grip so you can lift it easier. It's about becoming better or making something better.

👶 For kids: Making something stronger, like when you lift weights to make your arms strong!

More Examples

2

The coach emphasized the importance of team-building exercises for strengthening the group's cohesion.

3

Yoga is great for strengthening your core muscles.

How It's Used

Business

"The company is focused on strengthening its market position."

Health

"Regular exercise is important for strengthening bones and muscles."

Politics

"The government is exploring policies for strengthening national security."

From Middle English strengthening, equivalent to strengthen + -ing. The verb 'strengthen' derives from Old English 'strengþian', from 'strang' (strong).

Used extensively throughout history in contexts related to physical power, moral fortitude, and societal structure.

Memory tip

Think of adding extra support beams to a building to strengthen its structure.

Word Origin

LanguageOld English
Original meaning

"to make strong"

strengthening the economystrengthening musclesstrengthening the teamstrengthening tiesstrengthening its position

Common misspellings

stregtheningstreangtheningstrengthing

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written