Skip to main content
to fatten

to fatten

45 2.2
To make an animal gain weight and a sauce taste richer by giving more or richer food
  • verb
  • /ˈfætən/
translation icon : engordar
  • Farmers usually fatten up their livestock with special feeds to prepare them for market.
  • fatten steers
  • fatten pigs
  • fattening operations

You buy the cow, you fatten it up, you grow it, and then you sell it.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Pigs shared in the available food or were fattened on maize and garbage.

    Academic text (1997)
  • You buy the cow, you fatten it up, you grow it, and then you sell it.

  • We're the ones that fatten them up -

  • We'll fatten you up before you return to Boston.

  • If anything, you need fattening up.

  • We've got to fatten you up like a pig.

  • The cattle are born in an area responsible for deforestation, then they're moved to a sustainable farm where they get branded, fattened, and sent to a certified slaughterhouse.

  • To prepare for the winter, they constantly fatten their cattle by providing high-quality hay.

  • She decided to fatten up her dog to ensure he stayed warm during the cold months.

Synonyms

to put on
vsto fatten
58 2.2

To gain weight and become heavier

usually refers to increasing plumpness by feeding well rather than general weight gain
to fill out
vsto fatten
14 2.8

To become or make something fuller by adding more

refers specifically to increasing fatness or plumpness, often by feeding
to fatten up
vsto fatten
10 2.3

To give extra food so a person or animal gains weight

is about making or becoming plumper often through good feeding
to fat
vsto fatten
8 7.7

To make someone gain body weight

focuses on gaining fullness especially through better feeding rather than other causes
to plump
vsto fatten
5 3.8

To make someone or something fuller and rounder

is the act of becoming or being made plumper specifically by feeding well
to flesh out
vsto fatten
1 6.2

To become rounder and fuller, usually by gaining weight

describes gaining plumpness often by feeding well rather than natural maturation
to chub
vsto fatten
  • Informal
1 9.1

To become slightly fatter by gaining weight

is a broader term for increasing plumpness, often with a feeding focus
to fatten out
vsto fatten
4.9

To make an animal or person gain weight

is similar but stresses feeding well as the usual cause
to enflesh
vsto fatten
9.9

To make an animal or person fatter

is the everyday action of increasing plumpness, often by feeding
to plump out
vsto fatten
  • UK
6.1

To make someone or something rounder and fuller

means gaining plumpness with emphasis on feeding rather than general development
9.1

To gain weight and become healthier after being thin or sick

is about gaining plumpness through feeding but with no health recovery focus

Antonyms

24 2.9

To lose body weight

8 2.4

To become thinner by losing fat

Phrasal Verbs

10 2.3

To give extra food so a person or animal gains weight

To make an animal or person gain weight

To put extra money into savings so you have more

How Fat

to fatten
45 2.2
to gorge
12 5.9
to plump up
1 4.5
to feed
870 1.0
to maintain
931 3.1
to lose fat
4 3.0

Surface Forms

fatten infinitive
fattened past
fattened past participle
fattening present participle
fattens third person singular

Morphology

fatten = fat (transparent) = fat + en

A straightforward verb formation from the adjective 'fat' using the productive suffix '-en' meaning 'to make or become'.

Etymology

Fatten comes from the old English word fat meaning 'fat', plus the ending -en meaning 'make'. So, to fatten is literally to 'make fat', like feeding animals to make them plumper or adding butter to fatten a sauce.