1
as in to strengthen
to increase the ability of (as a muscle) to exert physical force
weight lifting will help toughen those flabby muscles of yours
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to harden
to make able to withstand physical hardship, strain, or exposure
hiking every morning through snow and ice toughened him considerably
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to stiffen
to make more harsh, uncompromising, or severe
attempts to toughen conditions under which waivers from military service would be permitted
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of toughen
Last year, the city toughened its national security law, and vocal political dissent has largely been silenced.
—
Katie Tam and Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 2024
Centrist politicians across Europe have toughened their migration policies in recent months, spooked by the electoral success of charismatic right-wing and anti-migrant leaders.
—Rob Picheta, CNN, 14 Dec. 2024
Further toughening his appearance are claw-like rings of his own design, some depicting multiple bird heads.
—Miles Socha, WWD, 5 Dec. 2024
The leadership and quality of Van Dijk is partnered with the towering presence of Milenkovic, who has toughened up Forest’s defence immeasurably.
—Rory Smith, The Athletic, 25 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for toughen 
Katie Tam and Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 2024
Centrist politicians across Europe have toughened their migration policies in recent months, spooked by the electoral success of charismatic right-wing and anti-migrant leaders.
—Rob Picheta, CNN, 14 Dec. 2024
Further toughening his appearance are claw-like rings of his own design, some depicting multiple bird heads.
—Miles Socha, WWD, 5 Dec. 2024
The leadership and quality of Van Dijk is partnered with the towering presence of Milenkovic, who has toughened up Forest’s defence immeasurably.
—Rory Smith, The Athletic, 25 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for toughen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for toughen
Verb
-
That connection was strengthened when Godbolt suffered a stroke in November.—
Michael Osipoff,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Jan. 2025
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Sterling strengthened on Wednesday after cooler-than-expected inflation prints out of the U.K. and U.S. sparked optimism around the U.K. economy and strengthened market bets on Federal Reserve interest rate cuts this year.—
Jenni Reid,Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
16 Jan. 2025
Verb
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These processes need to be sufficiently hardened by providers to prevent trivial abuse by these attackers and to maintain the security benefits of using passkeys.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
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Let the wax harden before popping the waxy dryer lint firestarters out of the carton.—
Rabekah Henderson,
Southern Living,
19 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Spritzing the end of the thread with hairspray will stiffen it just enough to be able to be threaded more easily, but keeps enough flexibility to be used.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
5 Jan. 2025
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Restrictive cardiomyopathy: Another rare type, this causes heart muscles to stiffen, which in turn prevents the heart’s ventricles from filling with enough blood to pump throughout the body.—
Elizabeth Millard,
TIME,
18 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near toughen
Cite this Entry
“Toughen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/toughen. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.
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