Definition of: quicken

(kwik′ən) v.t.
1. To cause to move more rapidly; hasten or accelerate.
2. To make alive or quick; give or restore life to.
3. To excite or arouse; stimulate: to quicken the appetite.
—v.i.
4. To move or act more quickly; become more rapid.
5. To come or return to life; revive.
6. To reach the stage of pregnancy at which the motions of the fetus first become perceptible: said of the mother.
7. To begin to manifest signs of life: said of the fetus.
—quick′en·er noun Synonyms: accelerate, advance, dispatch, drive, expedite, facilitate, further, hasten, hurry, promote, speed, urge. To quicken is to increase speed, move or cause to move more rapidly, as through more space or with a greater number of motions in the same time. To accelerate is to increase the speed of action or of motion. A motion whose speed increases upon itself is said to be accelerated, as the motion of a falling body, which becomes swifter with every second of time. To accelerate any work is to hasten it toward a finish. To dispatch is to do and be done with, to get a thing off one's hands. To dispatch an enemy is to kill him outright and quickly; to dispatch a messenger is to send him in haste; to dispatch a business is to bring it quickly to an end. To promote a cause is in any way to bring it forward, advance it in power, prominence, etc. To speed is really to secure swiftness; to hasten is to attempt it, whether successfully or unsuccessfully. Hurry always indicates something of confusion. To facilitate is to quicken by making easy; to expedite is to quicken by removing hindrances. Antonyms: check, clog, delay, drag, hinder, impede, obstruct, retard.