toughen
verb
\
, ˈtəf-niŋ \
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms & Antonyms for toughen
Synonyms
beef (up), fortify, harden, strengthen
Antonyms
debilitate, enervate, enfeeble, weaken
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of toughen in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
David Hamilton Koch was born in 1940, the son of a tough industrialist father who pitted his sons against each other to toughen them up. — Philip Elliott, Time, "David Koch's Millions Remade the Republican Party. He Didn't Like the Results," 23 Aug. 2019 Another shot: Ohio Senate Democrats are again introducing two gun-control measures that would require background checks for most gun sales and toughen rules on selling guns to minors. — Andrew J. Tobias, cleveland.com, "HB6 referendum effort trips over hurdle: Capitol Letter," 13 Aug. 2019 To see someone go through this process of becoming ruthless and toughening herself, that was a real challenge. — David Canfield, EW.com, "The Handmaid's Tale cast on how season 3 premiere marks totally 'new territory'," 5 June 2019 Breeders toughen up bees to resist deadly mites The recent rise of Varroa destructor, a type of mite that lives in bee colonies, has spurred the demise of bee populations worldwide. — Eva Frederick, Science | AAAS, "Top stories: Mite-proof bees, dark matter ‘bullets,’ and the tiny monkeys replanting the Amazon," 26 July 2019 DeWine plans to ask the legislature to toughen state laws for felons found with guns. — Sharon Coolidge, Cincinnati.com, "Ohio won't send National Guard to Cincinnati to curb violence, DeWine says," 23 July 2019 My own reaction to infractions toughens proportionally, along with the age of the child. — Ask Amy, oregonlive.com, "Ask Amy: Daughter feels responsibility to care for aging, abusive alcoholic mother," 22 July 2019 My own reaction to infractions toughens proportionally, along with the age of the child. — Amy Dickinson, The Denver Post, "Ask Amy: Tired child feels forced to care for abusive mom," 22 July 2019 My own reaction to infractions toughens proportionally along with the age of the child. — Amy Dickinson, The Mercury News, "Ask Amy: This abusive woman expects me to help her, and I feel obligated," 22 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'toughen.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for toughen
toughen
verb
English Language Learners Definition of toughen
See the full definition for toughen in the English Language Learners Dictionary
toughen
verb
\
Kids Definition of toughen
Keep scrolling for more