verb · neutral
deepen
/ˈdiːpən/DEEP·en
Band 5-6speakingtask2
to make something stronger or more intense, or to make something deeper in a physical or abstract sense
Examples
“The discussion helped deepen my understanding of the issue.”
“Climate change may deepen existing inequalities.”
“The storm deepened the river channel.”
Band 8 sentence
“Targeted feedback from tutors will deepen students' critical engagement with the literature.”
Collocations
- deepen understanding/knowledge
- deepen the gap/crisis
Word family
deepen verbdeepens verb (3rd sg)deepening verb / noun (gerund)deepened verb (past / past participle)
Common mistakes
make deep of my understanding→deepen my understanding
deepenning the gap→deepening the gap
Say it for a higher band
5make sth deeper→6increase→7+deepen
Synonyms
intensify
strengthen
Easily confused
broaden
“His research helped to broaden the scope of the study.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In -en
Learn it with its set