Thesaurus.com
Dictionary.com
Definitions

roughen

[ruhf-uhn] / ˈrʌf ən /




Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Red whirls on this rabbit’s tongue are filiform papillae, which roughen the tongue and help move food around the mouth.

From New York Times May 21, 2024

The general idea is that ground surfaces roughen after the mass movement of rocks and soil, so that landslide deposits are the roughest right after the landslide occurs and become smoother over time.

From Science Daily Nov. 7, 2023

The goal is to roughen up the surface so the paint adheres to the old polyurethane coat.

From Washington Post Mar. 2, 2022

“If you’re going out, I would apply Conformist Hair Paste to roughen up the texture,” he says.

From Forbes Jun. 10, 2014

The face is a fine—even a noble—one, whose features the bronzed and weatherworn results of a hard life have failed to roughen.

From Renshaw Fanning's Quest A Tale of the High Veldt by Bertram Mitford

Wells has a deep, oaky baritone that roughens to a grumble in its lower register.

From The New Yorker Feb. 4, 2019

Reproving puts on a stern aspect, roughens the voice, and is accompanied with gestures not much different from those of Threatening, but not so lively.

From The Young Gentleman and Lady's Monitor, and English Teacher's Assistant by John Hamilton Moore

Struggling against the savageness of man and nature must have roughened our manners a little, just as working on the ground roughens one's hands.

From The Bay State Monthly, Volume 3, No. 1 by Various

Such difference there is in tongues that the same figure which roughens one, gives majesty to another; and that was it which Virgil studied in his verses.

From Discourses on Satire and on Epic Poetry by John Dryden

He undulates the surface, he raises it in hills, scoops it into vallies, and roughens it with rocks.

From Travels in China, Containing Descriptions, Observations, and Comparisons, Made and Collected in the Course of a Short Residence at the Imperial Palace of Yuen-Min-Yuen, and on a Subsequent Journey through the Country from Pekin to Canton by Sir John Barrow

Auto-tune aside, fans will notice that Thorn's voice has deepened and roughened.

From BBC Apr. 22, 2023

“It wasn’t looked at being this roughened type of scenario. It was an offering with very strong comforts of home while you still were able to enjoy the outdoors with your family.”

From New York Times Aug. 28, 2022

To achieve the shells’ luminous surfaces, Utzon covered them with more than a million handcrafted ceramic tiles, their surfaces roughened by trace amounts of crushed stone, a technique inspired by Japanese pottery.

From New York Times Aug. 2, 2021

He sang his conversational lyrics in a voice roughened by a hard-luck life, particularly after throat cancer left him with a disfigured jaw.

From Washington Times Apr. 7, 2020

Dirt was in the baseboard that John scrubbed every Saturday, and roughened the cupboard shelves that held the cracked and gleaming dishes.

From "Go Tell It on the Mountain" by James Baldwin

Though it may seem counterintuitive, roughening a ball’s surface delays the separation of the boundary layer and keeps a ball in turbulent flow longer.

From Scientific American Nov. 19, 2022

“When I close my eyes, I can still feel that moment,” said the other daughter, Samia, her voice roughening as her eyes filled with tears.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 31, 2022

Instead he interprets traditional Yolngu chants, raising and roughening his gentle voice while a Western orchestra plays churning, minimalist accompaniments around him.

From New York Times Jul. 13, 2018

Wilmington’s Council had been closing shortfalls of 5 percent to 10 percent for several years, and the compounding effect was roughening the edges of a city that aggressively marketed its coastal quality of life.

From New York Times Jul. 5, 2011

“Photographs taken by means of slanting light show clearly the roughening and raising of the fibres of the paper about the date due to mechanical erasure,” the examiner wrote.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann




Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training