Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1300-1400
Language: French
Origin: magnifier, from Latin magnificus; MAGNIFICENT

magnify

 verb
     
mag‧ni‧fy past tense and past participle magnified, present participle magnifying, third person singular magnifies [transitive]
1 to make something seem bigger or louder, especially using special equipment:
At the Sheffield arena, the speakers were magnified ten times on a giant screen.
A public address system magnifies all the little noises and coughs.
2 to make something seem more important than it really is [= exaggerate]:
The report tends to magnify the risks involved.
3 formal to make something much worse or more serious:
The results of economic mismanagement were magnified by a series of natural disasters.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
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