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alighten

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alighten¹

  • /əˈlaɪtən/

Where it comes from

From Middle English alighten, from a merger of Old English ālīhtan (“to alight, dismount”), from prefix ā- (compare Gothic 𐌿𐍃- (us-), German er- originally meaning "out") + līhtan (“to alight”); and Old English ġelīhtan (“to alight, approach, come, come down, dismount”); equivalent to alight + -en.

verb alightens · alightening · alightened

  1. To alight, to dismount or get down from. When I alighten at my destination, I saw them going in the rickshaw.
  2. To alight; to land, to descend and rest. The bees always alighten at the bottom of the spike, and, crawling spirally up it, sucked one flower after the other.

alighten²

  • /əˈlaɪtən/

Where it comes from

From Middle English alighten, from a merger of Old English ālīhtan (“to lighten, relieve, alleviate, take off, take away, alight”) and Old English ġelīhtan (“to lighten, mitigate, assuage”); equivalent to a- + lighten.

verb alightens · alightening · alightened

  1. To lighten; to reduce in weight or heaviness. I shivered and shook, and would have screqamed in my fright—but the Fiend,—as he seemed to be, —in a hoarse, croaking voice, charged me to keep silence,—saying that I had lain seven years bound for my sin, and that my soul would speedily be sent on an errand to sinners yet on the earth, to warn them

alighten³

  • /əˈlaɪtən/

Where it comes from

From Middle English alighten, from Old English ālīhtan (“to light up, enlighten”); equivalent to a- + light. Cognate with German erleuchten (“to light up, illuminate”).

verb alightens · alightening · alightened

  1. To make light; to illuminate or brighten. Of those who should be alightened by his faith and sanctified by his grace Christ designed to form a holy society, over which he will reign for ever.

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MLA

"alighten." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/alighten. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

alighten. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/alighten

Chicago

"alighten." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/alighten.

BibTeX
@misc{alighten_2026,
  title = {alighten},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/alighten},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}