darken

English

Etymology

From Middle English derkenen, dirkenen, from Old English *deorcnian, *diercnian (“to darken”), from Proto-West Germanic *dirkinōn (“to darken”), equivalent to dark +‎ -en.

Cognate with Scots derken, durken (“to darken”), Old High German tarchanjan, terchinen (“to darken”), Middle High German terken, derken (“to darken”).

Pronunciation

(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈdɑɹkən/
(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈdɑːkən/
Audio (Southern England) (file)
Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)kən

Verb

darken (third-person singular simple present darkens, present participle darkening, simple past and past participle darkened)

(transitive) To make dark or darker by reducing light.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Exodus 10:15:
  […] they [locusts] covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened […]
- 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the book number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], OCLC 228722708; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, OCLC 230729554:
  So spake the Sovran voice, and Clouds began
  To darken all the Hill […]
(intransitive) To become dark or darker (having less light).
- 1783, William Blake, “The Couch of Death”, in Richard Herne Shepherd, editor, Poetical Sketches‎, 1868 edition, Basil Montagu Pickering, page 84:
  […] the owl and the bat flew round the darkening trees:
- 1930, Zane Grey, “Chapter Twelve”, in The Shepherd of Guadeloupe‎:
  […] leaning at her window she watched the end of that eventful day darken over the ranges.
(impersonal) To get dark (referring to the sky, either in the evening or as a result of cloud).
- 1847 October 16, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], chapter XV, in Jane Eyre. An Autobiography. […], volume I, London: Smith, Elder, and Co., […], OCLC 3163777, page 289:
  Well, I must go in now; and you too: it darkens.
- 1901, William Stearns Davis, “Chapter 4”, in A Friend of Cæsar‎, New York: Macmillan, page 57:
  Then they passed out from the Forum, forced their way through the crowded streets, and soon were through the Porta Ratumena, outside the walls, and struck out across the Campus Martius, upon the Via Flaminia. It was rapidly darkening.
- 1945, Gertrude Stein, Wars I Have Seen‎, London: B.T. Batsford, page 13:
  From babyhood until fourteen, to play in a garden in the evening when it is darkening is a legend.
- 1996, Colm Tóibín, “Portrait of the Artist as a Spring Lamb”, in The Kilfenora Teaboy: A Study of Paul Durcan‎, Dublin: New Island Books, page 7:
  It had been fine all morning, but it was darkening now, the weather was going to get worse.
- 2005, David Almond, Clay, London: Hodder Literature, Chapter Ten, p. 44,
  He looked up. It was darkening here as well. Sky getting red, the edge of the quarry dark and jagged against it.
(transitive) To make dark or darker in colour.
- 2009, Alice Munro, “Free Radicals” in Too Much Happiness, Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, p. 118,
  She puts on lipstick and darkens her eyebrows, which are now very scanty […]
(intransitive) To become dark or darker in colour.
- 1979, Mary Stewart, The Last Enchantment, New York: Fawcett Crest, Book 4, Chapter 4, p. 405,
  The lovely hair had lost its rose-gold glimmer, and had darkened to rose-brown […]
(transitive) To render gloomy, darker in mood.
- c. 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The VVinters Tale”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act IV, scene iv]:
  With these forced thoughts, I prithee, darken not
  The mirth o’ the feast.
- 1969, Chaim Potok, The Promise, New York: Fawcett Crest, 1872, Chapter Four, p. 89,
  It was a pleasure seeing you again. I’m only sorry I had to darken the pleasure with my private problems.
(intransitive) To become gloomy, darker in mood.
- 1797, Ann Radcliffe, The Italian, London: T. Cadell Jun[ior] and W. Davies, Volume 2, Chapter 9, p. 303,
  His countenance darkened while he spoke […]
- 1942, Emily Carr, “Mrs. Crane”, in The Book of Small:
  Alice’s big eyes darkened with trouble.
(transitive) To blind, impair the eyesight.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Romans 9:10:
  Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see […]
- 1773, Samuel Johnson, letter to James Boswell dated 5 July, 1773, in James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson, Volume I, London: Charles Dilly, p. 424,
  When your letter came to me, I was so darkened by an inflammation in my eye, that I could not for some time read it.
(intransitive) To be blinded, lose one’s eyesight.
(transitive) To cloud, obscure, or perplex; to render less clear or intelligible.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Job 38:2:
  Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?
- 1622, Francis, Lord Verulam, Viscount St. Alban [i.e. Francis Bacon], The Historie of the Raigne of King Henry the Seventh, […], London: […] W[illiam] Stansby for Matthew Lownes, and William Barret, OCLC 1086746628:
  […] such was his wisdome, as his Confidence did seldome darken his Fore-sight […]
- May 14 1751, Samuel Johnson, The Rambler‎, volume 4, number 121, London: J. Payne & J. Bouquet, page 193:
  His [Edmund Spenser’s] stile was in his own time allowed to be vicious, so darkened with old words and peculiarities of phrase, and so remote from common use, that Johnson boldly pronounces him to have written no language.
(transitive) To make foul; to sully; to tarnish.
- c. 1606–1607, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene iv]:
  I must not think there are
  Evils enow to darken all his goodness:

Conjugation

Conjugation of darken

infinitive	(to) darken
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	darken	darkened
2nd-person singular	darken, darkenest^†	darkened, darkenedst^†
3rd-person singular	darkens, darkeneth^†	darkened
plural	darken	darkened

subjunctive	darken	darkened

imperative	darken	—

participles	darkening	darkened

^†Archaic or obsolete.

Synonyms

blacken
swarten

Derived terms

bedarken
darken a church door
darkener
darken someone's door
darken someone's doorstep
darken someone's doorway

Related terms

dark

Translations

to make dark by reducing light

Albanian: ngrys (sq)
Apache:
Western Apache: chaanaguayea galea
Armenian: մթնեցնել (hy) (mtʿnecʿnel)
Azerbaijani: qaranlıqlaşdırmaq
Basque: goibeldu
Bulgarian: затъмнявам (bg) (zatǎmnjavam)
Chinese: Mandarin: 变暗 (zh) (biànàn)
Danish: formørke
Dutch: verduisteren (nl), verdonkeren (nl)
Finnish: pimentää
French: obscurcir (fr), assombrir (fr)
Galician: escurecer (gl), escurentar, enfoscar, amourear, abazanar, lobrecer
Greek:
Ancient: ἀμαυρόω (amauróō)
Italian: imbrunire (it)
Korean: 어둡게 하다 (eodupge hada)
Kven: pimmenttäät
Maori: whakapō
Norwegian: formørke
Nynorsk: formørke
Polish: zaciemniać (pl)
Romagnol: imbrunìr
Romanian: întuneca (ro)
Russian: затемнять (ru) (zatemnjatʹ)
Spanish: oscurecer (es), obscurecer (es)
Swedish: förmörka (sv)

to become darker (less bright)

Albanian: ngrys (sq)
Armenian: մթնել (hy) (mtʿnel)
Azerbaijani: qaralmaq
Bulgarian: потъмнявам (bg) (potǎmnjavam)
Dutch: donker worden
Esperanto: malheliĝi
Finnish: pimentyä (fi)
French: obscurcir (fr) (reflexive), assombrir (fr) (reflexive)
Galician: escurecer (gl), escurentar, enfoscar, amourear, abazanar, entoldar, toldar, entoucar, lobrecer
German: verdunkeln (de)
Gothic: 𐍂𐌹𐌵𐌹𐌶𐌾𐌰𐌽 (riqizjan)
Greek:
Ancient: ἀμαυρόομαι (amauróomai)
Italian: imbrunire (it)
Old English: nīpan
Quechua: arphayay
Romagnol: imbrunìr
Russian: темне́ть (ru) (temnétʹ)
Swedish: mörkna (sv)

to make dark(er) in colour

Albanian: ngrys (sq)
Armenian: մգացնել (hy) (mgacʿnel)
Azerbaijani: qaraltmaq
Basque: goibeldu
Dutch: donkerder (nl) maken (nl), donkerder (nl) kleuren (nl)
Finnish: tummentaa (fi)
French: foncer (fr)
Galician: escurecer (gl), enfoscar, amourear, abazanar, enmourecer, atrapecer
Icelandic: dekkja
Italian: imbrunire (it)
Romagnol: imbrunìr
Russian: затемнять (ru) (zatemnjatʹ)

to become dark(er) in colour

Albanian: ngrys (sq)
Armenian: մգանալ (hy) (mganal)
Bulgarian: потъмнявам (bg) (potǎmnjavam)
Dutch: donkerder worden
Finnish: tummentua
French: foncer (fr) (reflexive )
Galician: escurecer (gl), enfoscar, amourear, abazanar, enmourecer, atrapecer
German: verdunkeln (de)
Icelandic: dökkna
Italian: imbrunire (it)
Latin: nigresco
Romagnol: imbrunìr
Russian: темне́ть (ru) (temnétʹ)
Swedish: mörkna (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

French: ^{(please verify)} foncer (fr), ^{(please verify)} assombrir (fr)
Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} להחשיך‎ (lehakhshykh)
Irish: ^{(please verify)} uraigh (transitive)
Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} pomračiti (sh), ^{(please verify)} zamračiti (sh)
Spanish: ^{(please verify)} oscurecer (es)

Anagrams

Danker, Kendra, danker, de-rank, derank, endark, kendra, narked, ranked