flatten
to make flat.
to knock down: The boxer flattened his opponent in the second round.
to become flat.
flatten in, Nautical. flat1 (def. 61).
flatten out, Aeronautics. to fly into a horizontal position, as after a dive.
Origin of flatten
1Other words for flatten
Other words from flatten
- flat·ten·er, noun
- o·ver·flat·ten, verb (used with object)
- un·flat·tened, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use flatten in a sentence
The region of the head first becomes distinguishable by the flattening out of the germ at its front end.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1 | Francis Maitland BalfourFlattening out just in time to avert destruction it taxied up the field almost to the house.
The Skylark of Space | Edward Elmer Smith and Lee Hawkins GarbyThese special cushions keep the body from flattening out, as it normally would under such a pressure.
The Skylark of Space | Edward Elmer Smith and Lee Hawkins GarbyDo not make the hat too flat; if you find it flattening out, lap the leaves over more at the bottom.
Mother Nature's Toy-Shop | Lina BeardJoan reached the corridor just in time to see the elevator flattening out its iron gates with judge and briefcase inside.
Joan of the Journal | Helen Diehl Olds
British Dictionary definitions for flatten
/ (ˈflætən) /
(sometimes foll by out) to make or become flat or flatter
(tr) informal
to knock down or injure; prostrate
to crush or subdue: failure will flatten his self-esteem
(tr) music to lower the pitch of (a note) by one chromatic semitone: Usual US word: flat
(intr foll by out) to manoeuvre an aircraft into horizontal flight, esp after a dive
Derived forms of flatten
- flattener, noun
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
Browse