coarsen

[ kawr-suhn, kohr- ]

verb (used with or without object)

1. to make or become coarse.

coarsen

/ ˈkɔːsən /

verb

1. to make or become coarse

Word History and Origins

Origin of coarsen¹

First recorded in 1795–1805; coarse + -en ¹

Example Sentences

The national discourse has coarsened, partisan divisions have sharpened and become more entrenched, and the standards for candidate behaviour have eroded.

From BBC

No political figure of the past generation has done more to coarsen the nation’s politics, lower the bar for acceptable discourse and promote political violence than Trump.

From Los Angeles Times

In her recent New York Times article about the "coarsening" of the religious right, Ruth Graham alluded to this, writing about the trend of evangelical leaders using "vulgarities."

From Salon

The use of an expletive from a Trump campaign social media account on Monday reflects the coarsening of political discourse in the Trump era.

From New York Times

In these landscapes, naturalism and abstraction often battle to a pulsating draw by means of a magnified, or coarsened pointillism that recalls Seurat in its mosaic-like array of dots, dashes and commas.

From New York Times

Related Words

• augment
• broaden
• build up
• swell