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View synonyms for

flatten

[flat-n]

verb (used with object)

  1. to make flat.

  2. to knock down.

    The boxer flattened his opponent in the second round.

    Synonyms: , , , ,


verb (used without object)

  1. to become flat.

verb phrase

  1. Aeronauticsto fly into a horizontal position, as after a dive.

  2. Nauticalflat.

flatten

/ ˈڱæə /

verb

  1. (sometimes foll by out) to make or become flat or flatter

  2. informal(tr)

    1. to knock down or injure; prostrate

    2. to crush or subdue

      failure will flatten his self-esteem

  3. Usual US word: flat.(tr) music to lower the pitch of (a note) by one chromatic semitone

  4. to manoeuvre an aircraft into horizontal flight, esp after a dive

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • flattener noun
  • overflatten verb (used with object)
  • unflattened adjective
  • ˈڱٳٱԱ noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of flatten1

First recorded in 1620–30; flat 1 + -en 1
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A Lord's pitch which had proved tricky for batters in the first two days - especially in the face of some truly top-class bowling - began to flatten out.

From

The tiny, flattened and sluglike creatures can cause gastrointestinal problems, weight loss and lethargy when a person eats an infected fish.

From

Although the village had been evacuated some days ago because of fears the Birch glacier was disintegrating, one person has been reported missing, and many homes have been completely flattened.

From

Forms of relation with land and water which exceed the fiscal are being flattened towards extinction.

From

The germ of an edgy fantasia about an isolated pop icon’s ego death is swimming somewhere in the DNA of “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” but it’s been flattened into a superficial, tear-stained pity party.

From

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flat taxflatten the curve