soften

weich machen, weich werden

Etwas weniger hart machen oder selbst weniger hart werden.

In einfachem Englisch: To make something less hard, or to become less hard.

• Warm water will soften the clay.
• The butter softened on the kitchen counter.
• Cook the onions until they soften.

Gegenteile: harden

Häufige Wendungen: soften butter, soften the leather, soften the skin

mildern, abschwächen

Worte, Geräusche, Gefühle oder Handlungen weniger stark, streng oder unangenehm machen.

In einfachem Englisch: To make words, sounds, feelings, or actions less strong, severe, or unpleasant.

• She softened her voice.
• He tried to soften the criticism with a smile.
• The extra payment softened the blow of losing her job.

Synonyme: ease, moderate, tone down

Gegenteile: intensify

Häufige Wendungen: soften the blow, soften your tone, soften the criticism

zermürben, schwächen

Das Selbstvertrauen oder den Widerstand einer Person schwächen, damit sie leichter zu besiegen oder zu überzeugen ist.

In einfachem Englisch: To weaken someone's confidence or resistance so they are easier to defeat or persuade.

• The attacks softened the enemy's resistance.
• They used constant pressure to soften the prisoners up.
• Weeks of bombing had softened up the defending troops.

So benutzt man es: soften someone up (The bombardment was intended to soften the enemy up.)

Synonyme: weaken, wear down

Gegenteile: strengthen

Häufige Wendungen: soften someone up, soften the enemy