flattened
/ˈflæt.ən/ (bre, ipa) · [flˈætənd] /ˈflæt̬.ən/ (ame, ipa)
flattened — verb
- flattenedpresent simple I / you / we / they
- flatteneds3rd person singular
- flatteneding-ing form
- flattenededpast simple
1. to press or push something down so its surface becomes level, or to lose any bum
to press or push something down so its surface becomes level, or to lose any bumps or curves of its own and end up level.
Tariro flattened the cardboard box with her boot before recycling it.
transitive: flatten + concrete object
The road roller flattened the muddy track outside the school gate.
machine subject leveling a surface
Caio rolled out the dough and flattened it into a thin circle for pizza.
After the storm, several tents in the campsite had flattened against the wet ground.
Cyrus flattened a sheet of foil over the baking tray with his palm.
- level
more formal; often used for ground or surfaces in construction
- smooth
focuses on removing bumps, not pressing down
- press down
describes the action without saying the object ends up level
文法句型
flatten + [object]
[surface] + flattens
用法筆記
Typical objects are thin, soft, or hollow things (boxes, cans, dough, grass). Distinguish from sense 2 (numbers / rates levelling off) and sense 4 (becoming thinner as it flattens).
常見錯誤
2. if numbers, prices, or activity flatten, they stop going up or down quickly and
if numbers, prices, or activity flatten, they stop going up or down quickly and stay at roughly one level; you can also flatten a rate by holding it steady.
House prices in Amihan's neighbourhood flattened after a year of rapid increases.
intransitive with economic subject
Sales of the new phone flattened in March and stayed at around two thousand a week.
subject + flatten + adverbial of when/where
The central bank tried to flatten the rise in borrowing costs with new rules.
Asher noticed that the daily download numbers had flattened over the past two weeks.
文法句型
[numbers/prices] + flatten
flatten + the rate/growth
用法筆記
Subject is usually a measurable trend (prices, sales, infections, growth). Distinguish from sense 3, which is specifically about graph curves used in public-health or technical reporting.
常見錯誤
3. to slow down how quickly a chart's rising line keeps climbing, most often used a
to slow down how quickly a chart's rising line keeps climbing, most often used about the speed at which an illness moves through a population.
Health officials urged everyone to wear masks to help flatten the curve of new infections.
fixed collocation: flatten the curve
Élise's hospital team worked overtime to flatten the curve before winter arrived.
agent + flatten + curve in a medical setting
Schools in Sahil's district closed for two weeks to try to flatten the spread of flu.
The new vaccine programme helped flatten the rising line of cases across the country.
- accelerate
make something happen faster
文法句型
flatten + the curve
flatten + the line on a graph
用法筆記
Almost always transitive with 'the curve', 'the line', or 'the spread' as object. Distinguish from sense 2: sense 3 is the graph metaphor used in public-health reporting, especially during disease outbreaks.
常見錯誤
4. to press a soft material out so it becomes a thin level layer, or to spread out
to press a soft material out so it becomes a thin level layer, or to spread out like that by itself; the change in thickness is the key idea, not just becoming level.
Andrew flattened the ball of clay into a thin disc with the side of his hand.
flatten + soft material + into [shape]
Eitan flattened the pancake batter on the hot pan with the back of a spoon.
kitchen scene; tool used to thin the layer
The piece of butter flattened slowly as it warmed up on the toast.
Liang flattened the lump of dough until it was thin enough to wrap the dumplings.
- thicken
make something become thicker
文法句型
flatten + [soft object] + into [shape]
[material] + flattens
用法筆記
Object must be something soft enough to thin out (dough, clay, butter, foil). Distinguish from sense 1: sense 4 focuses on the material becoming noticeably thinner, not just losing its bumps.