From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Enlarge \En*large"\, v. i.
1. To grow large or larger; to be further extended; to
expand; as, a plant enlarges by growth; an estate enlarges
by good management; a volume of air enlarges by
rarefaction.
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2. To speak or write at length; to be diffuse in speaking or
writing; to expatiate; to dilate.
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To enlarge upon this theme. --M. Arnold.
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3. (Naut.) To get more astern or parallel with the vessel's
course; to draw aft; -- said of the wind.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Enlarge \En*large"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Enlarged; p. pr. &
vb. n. Enlarging.] [OF. enlargier; pref. en- (L. in) + F.
large wide. See Large.]
1. To make larger; to increase in quantity or dimensions; to
extend in limits; to magnify; as, the body is enlarged by
nutrition; to enlarge one's house.
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To enlarge their possessions of land. --Locke.
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2. To increase the capacity of; to expand; to give free scope
or greater scope to; also, to dilate, as with joy,
affection, and the like; as, knowledge enlarges the mind.
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O ye Corinthians, our . . . heart is enlarged. --2
Cor. vi. 11.
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3. To set at large or set free. [Archaic]
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It will enlarge us from all restraints. --Barrow.
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Enlarging hammer, a hammer with a slightly rounded face of
large diameter; -- used by gold beaters. --Knight.
To enlarge an order or To enlarge a rule (Law), to extend
the time for complying with it. --Abbott.
To enlarge one's self, to give free vent to speech; to
spread out discourse. "They enlarged themselves on this
subject." --Clarendon.
To enlarge the heart, to make free, liberal, and
charitable.
Syn: To increase; extend; expand; spread; amplify; augment;
magnify. See Increase.
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From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
enlarge
v 1: make larger; "She enlarged the flower beds"
2: make large; "blow up an image" [syn: blow up, enlarge,
magnify] [ant: reduce, scale down]
3: become larger or bigger
4: add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of
and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing; "She
elaborated on the main ideas in her dissertation" [syn:
elaborate, lucubrate, expatiate, exposit, enlarge,
flesh out, expand, expound, dilate] [ant:
abbreviate, abridge, contract, cut, foreshorten,
reduce, shorten]