loosen

English

From loose +‎ -en.

loosen (third-person singular simple present loosens, present participle loosening, simple past and past participle loosened)

(transitive) To make loose.
to loosen a knot

After the Thanksgiving meal, Bill loosened his belt.
- Francis Bacon
  After a year's rooting, then shaking doth the tree good by loosening of the earth.
(intransitive) To become loose.
I noticed that my seatbelt had gradually loosened during the journey.
(transitive) To free from restraint; to set at liberty.
- Dryden
  It loosens his hands, and assists his understanding.
(transitive) To remove costiveness from; to facilitate or increase the alvine discharges of.
(Can we find and add a quotation of Francis Bacon to this entry?)

to make less tight

Italian: allentare (it)
Japanese: ゆるめる (ja) (yurumeru), ほどく (ja) (hodoku)
Latin: labefacio
Maori: whakatangatanga, whakakorokoro, ^{(please verify)} whakakaewa, ^{(please verify)} whakahorohoro, ^{(please verify)} whakangoru
Norwegian:
Bokmål: løsne (no), løse (no)

Nynorsk: løyse
Portuguese: afrouxar (pt)
Romanian: desface (ro)
Russian: ослабля́ть (ru) impf (oslabljátʹ), осла́бить (ru) pf (oslábitʹ)
Sardinian:
Campidanese: ammollai

Logudorese: allenare
Spanish: aflojar (es), soltar (es)

to free from restraint; to set at liberty

to remove costiveness

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