quicken

quicken [kwik-uhn] SynonymsExamplesWord Origin verb (used with object)

1. to make more rapid; accelerate; hasten: She quickened her pace.
2. to give or restore vigor or activity to; stir up, rouse, or stimulate: to quicken the imagination.
3. to revive; restore life to: The spring rains quickened the earth.

verb (used without object)

4. to become more active, sensitive, etc.: This drug causes the pulse to quicken.
5. to become alive; receive life.
6. (of the mother) to enter that stage of pregnancy in which the fetus gives indications of life.
7. (of a fetus in the womb) to begin to manifest signs of life.

Origin of quicken First recorded in 1250–1300, quicken is from the Middle English word quikenen. See quick, -en1 Related formsquick·en·er, nounre·quick·en, verbun·quick·ened, adjectiveSynonyms for quicken 2. animate, vitalize, enliven. 3. vivify. Examples from the Web for quickener Historical Examples of quickener

It was a quickener to him, that his road lay for some distance along the Linden-city causeway.

Titan: A Romance v. 1 (of 2)

Jean Paul Friedrich Richter

Henry’s silence was probably meant as a quickener of the beadsman’s garrulity.

Wilson’s Tales of the Borders and of Scotland

Various

As a teacher he proved himself a quickener of thought amongst students, rather than a close and special instructor.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 1

Various

It is a quickener of the intellect, a purifier of the affections, and an instrument of heightening our spiritual aspirations.

The Young Maiden

A. B. (Artemas Bowers) Muzzey

And truly Mr. Chesterton is invaluable as a quickener and stimulator of the minds of his readers.

Among Famous Books

John Kelman

British Dictionary definitions for quickener quicken verb

1. to make or become faster; acceleratehe quickened his walk; her heartbeat quickened with excitement
2. to impart to or receive vigour, enthusiasm, etc; stimulate or be stimulatedscience quickens man’s imagination
3. to make or become alive; revive
4. 1. (of an unborn fetus) to begin to show signs of life
   2. (of a pregnant woman) to reach the stage of pregnancy at which movements of the fetus can be felt

Word Origin and History for quickener quicken v.

c.1300, “come to life; give life to,” from quick (adj.) + -en (1). Meaning “become faster” is from 1805. Related: Quickened; quickening. An earlier verb was simply quick (c.1200), from Old English gecwician.

quickener in Medicine quicken [kwĭk′ən] v.

1. To reach the stage of pregnancy when the fetus can be felt to move.