soften sth
You can soften the butter in the microwave.
你可以在微波炉里软化黄油。
使变软；使变柔和
softening — present participle of soften
变软；变柔和；使某物变软或更软；削弱某人的士气(常用作soften up)；使不那么严厉；变软或更软
make something soft or softer
可指使物体变软，或使声音、光线、画面等变得柔和。
使某物变软或更软
To make something soft or softer.
削弱某人的士气(常用作soften up)
To undermine the morale of someone (often soften up).
使不那么严厉
To make less harsh.
变软或更软
To become soft or softer.
使(辅音)变得更柔和,软化
To become or make (a consonant) more lenis, to lenite.
使腭化
To palatalize.
一般现在时
I soften the butter.
我把黄油变软。
third person
He softens the clay.
他把粘土变软。
现在进行时
She is softening the sugar.
她正在把糖变软。
一般过去时
They softened the material.
他们使材料变软。
现在完成时
It has softened.
它已经变软了。
The heat softened the butter, making it easy to spread.
热使黄油变软，很容易涂抹。
用法提示：此处 soften 为及物动词，意为“使变软”，过去式 softened 表示动作已完成。
Her voice softened as she spoke to the child.
她对孩子说话时，声音变得柔和了。
用法提示：此处 soften 为不及物动词，意为“变柔和”，过去式 softened 描述状态变化。
You can soften the vegetables by cooking them for a few minutes.
你可以把蔬菜煮几分钟使其变软。
用法提示：此处 soften 为及物动词，与情态动词 can 连用，表示“使变软”的方法。
You can soften the butter in the microwave.
你可以在微波炉里软化黄油。
此短语动词意为“削弱…的抵抗力”。
The soldiers tried to soften up the enemy with artillery.
士兵们试图用炮火削弱敌人。
The butter softened in the heat.
黄油在高温下变软了。
侧重指变得成熟温和，常用于性格、声音或颜色
侧重指减轻程度，常用于强度、观点或行为
正式用词，侧重减轻负面影响，常用于痛苦、问题或影响
口语化短语，常指言辞、颜色或行为的柔和化
侧重指紧张状态的缓解，常用于肌肉、规则或气氛
grammar · medium
易错句子I want to soft the butter.
正确表达I want to soften the butter.
“soft”是形容词，不能直接作动词，应使用动词“soften”。
grammar · medium
易错句子The bread is soften.
正确表达The bread is soft.
“soften”是动词，不能作形容词；表示状态应用形容词“soft”。
针对“使变柔软”义项的反义词；表示使物体或态度变得坚硬或强硬。
针对“使变柔软”义项的反义词；强调使变得坚韧、不易弯曲或软化。
针对“使变柔软”义项的反义词；指使某物变得僵硬、不易弯曲。
soft是形容词，soften是动词。soft形容状态，soften表示动作。
softly是副词，修饰动作；soften是动词，表示使变软。
soften up是短语动词，意为通过讨好使人改变态度；soften单用指使物体变软或使语气缓和。
减轻打击
He tried to soften the blow with a joke.
他试图用笑话来减轻打击。
柔化光线
She used a lampshade to soften the light.
她用灯罩柔化光线。
使某人变心软
The puppy's eyes softened her heart.
小狗的眼神使她心软了。
减轻冲击
The airbag softened the impact of the crash.
安全气囊减轻了碰撞的冲击。
缓和语气
He softened his tone when he saw her upset.
看到她难过，他缓和了语气。
软化态度
The manager softened his attitude after the discussion.
讨论后经理的态度软化了。
两者均涉及使物体变软或变柔的过程，但melt特指通过加热使固态变为液态。
soften强调质地变软，smooth强调表面变平整，常伴随软化过程。
在烹饪中，两者都用于描述使肉类或蔬菜变软的过程。
用于描述使味道、声音或性格变得柔和、不刺激的过程。
用于描述使肌肉或紧张状态变得松弛、柔和不紧绷。
缓和打击，减轻冲击
He tried to soften the blow by telling her gently.
他试图通过温和地告诉她来减轻打击。
劝诱某人，使某人软化
She softened him up with flattery before asking for a favor.
她在请求帮忙之前先用恭维话软化他。
铺平道路，打基础
The CEO's visit softened the ground for the new partnership.
CEO的访问为新的合作伙伴关系铺平了道路。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY, WORDNET.