whiten Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb turn white
    white.
    • This detergent will whiten your laundry

WordNet

Whit"en intransitive verb
Etymology
OE. whitenen; cf. Icel. hvitna.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Whitened ; present participle & verbal noun Whitening
Definitions
  1. To grow white; to turn or become white or whiter; as, the hair whitens with age; the sea whitens with foam; the trees in spring whiten with blossoms.
Whit"en transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To make white; to bleach; to blanch; to whitewash; as, to whiten a wall; to whiten cloth.
    The broad stream of the Foyle then whitened by vast flocks of wild swans. Macaulay.
    Syn. -- See Blanch.

Webster 1913