narrowing
narrowing — adjective
1. becoming less wide from side to side as it continues or moves forward.
becoming less wide from side to side as it continues or moves forward.
The narrowing road forced Baraka to slow the truck near the bridge.
pattern: narrowing + road
A narrowing path ran between the tea fields behind Mei's house.
We stopped where the narrowing river passed between two dark rocks.
The firefighters crawled through a narrowing hallway to reach the back room.
- tapering
often suggests a shape that becomes gradually thinner toward one end
- constricting
stronger and often used when space feels tight or pressured
- widening
describes the same kind of shape change in the opposite direction
文法句型
a narrowing road
a narrowing river
用法筆記
Usually appears before nouns such as road, path, river, or hallway when the shape is changing and the sides are moving closer together.
2. becoming smaller in range, choice, or activity, so fewer things are included.
becoming smaller in range, choice, or activity, so fewer things are included.
The narrowing job market worried Ilan after the factory closed.
collocation: narrowing job market
A narrowing choice of flights pushed Noor to book early.
The club faced a narrowing pool of young volunteers this year.
Teachers discussed the narrowing range of subjects at the school.
- expanding
used when a field, market, or set of choices is growing
文法句型
a narrowing market
a narrowing range
用法筆記
Most often used with nouns like market, field, choice, or range when the number of possibilities is getting smaller over time.
3. becoming smaller until the difference between two sides, amounts, or results is
becoming smaller until the difference between two sides, amounts, or results is almost gone.
The narrowing gap between rents and wages still worried families.
collocation: narrowing gap
A narrowing lead kept the home crowd tense in the final minute.
Analysts watched the narrowing difference in prices across the two cities.
The narrowing score gap gave Rachel hope before the last point.
- closing
common for a gap, distance, or lead that is becoming smaller
- tightening
often used when a race or result is becoming more even
- widening
used when the difference between two sides is growing larger
文法句型
a narrowing gap
a narrowing lead
用法筆記
Common with nouns like gap, lead, margin, or difference when the focus is on two sides moving closer together rather than on physical width.
narrowing — noun
1. a place where a road, river, or passage becomes narrower than the area around it
a place where a road, river, or passage becomes narrower than the area around it.
Traffic slowed at the narrowing before the old tunnel outside town.
pattern: at the narrowing
The kayaks turned sideways to pass through the narrowing in the stream.
pattern: through the narrowing
A stone wall marked the narrowing between the two farm fields.
The guard waited at the narrowing where all visitors had to queue.
- pinch point
more technical and often used for traffic or movement flow
- bottleneck
stresses delay or blockage rather than shape alone
- opening
a place where space becomes wider or more open
文法句型
the narrowing
at a narrowing
through a narrowing
用法筆記
Usually appears with the or a and is most common in descriptions of routes, waterways, or passages where movement is squeezed into a smaller space.
narrowing — verb
1. to have its sides move closer together, or for a person to move the sides of som
to have its sides move closer together, or for a person to move the sides of something closer together.
The lane is narrowing near the school, so buses take turns.
intransitive: something is narrowing
Workers are narrowing the doorway to stop cold air getting in.
transitive: narrowing the doorway
The river was narrowing as our boat moved toward the village.
Anong is narrowing the dress at the waist before the wedding.
The crack is narrowing after the wall dried for two weeks.
- widen
means to become wider or make something wider
文法句型
something is narrowing
be narrowing something
用法筆記
Used both intransitively for roads, rivers, or openings and transitively when someone changes the width of clothes, passages, or other physical spaces.
常見錯誤
2. to make something smaller, fewer, or closer, especially a choice, difference, or
to make something smaller, fewer, or closer, especially a choice, difference, or area of focus.
The gap is narrowing as more stores cut their prices.
intransitive: a gap is narrowing
Meera is narrowing the list to three colleges this week.
pattern: narrowing something to
Scientists are narrowing the search area after the second signal.
The Lions' lead kept narrowing after the other team scored twice.
Ziad is narrowing his research to schools in northern Taiwan.
- expand
means to make something larger or broader in range
文法句型
something is narrowing
narrowing something to a smaller set
用法筆記
Often used with gap, list, search, choice, or focus. When followed by to, it points to the smaller final group or target.