fatten

fatten — verb

1. to cause a person, animal, or thing to become heavier or rounder by feeding them

1.動詞及物 / 不及物B1
釋義

to cause a person, animal, or thing to become heavier or rounder by feeding them well; or to become heavier and rounder oneself, especially with the purpose of reaching a healthy or desired size.

例句

The farmer fattened the pigs over the winter for the autumn market.

transitive: fatten + animal for a purpose

Mark tried to fatten up his rescue dog after finding her on the street.

phrasal: fatten up + object for recovery

同義詞
  • plump

    gentler and more specific to rounding out, often used for babies or cheeks

  • fatten up

    phrasal verb, more colloquial; implies bringing to a full/healthy size

  • feed up

    British English; focuses on giving extra food to restore strength

反義詞
  • thin

    to make or become thinner

  • slim down

    phrasal verb focusing on intentional weight reduction

文法句型

fatten + object (animal, person, thing)

fatten + object + up

fatten on + food/pasture

用法筆記

The particle 'up' (fatten up) is common in everyday speech and adds a sense of 'fully' or 'completely' — e.g., fatten up a sick child, fatten up a thin calf. Figuratively, fatten can refer to increasing the size or amount of something non-physical, such as a bank account, budget, or document. In these uses the transitivity is always active (transitive); the intransitive pattern (fatten on + food) is restricted to animal subjects.

常見錯誤

❌I want to fatten my body at the gym
✅I want to build muscle at the gym
💡'fatten' implies gaining fat or weight through eating, not building muscle through exercise.
❌She fattened on the couch watching TV
✅She got fat from sitting on the couch watching TV
💡'fatten on' is used for animals eating pasture, not humans in informal contexts.