anneal
transitive verb
- Obsolete to fire or glaze, as in a kiln
- to heat (glass, metals, etc.) and then cool, sometimes slowly, to prevent brittleness
- to strengthen and temper (the mind, will, etc.)
See anneal in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(ə-nēlˈ)
verb an·nealed,
an·neal·ing,
an·neals verb, transitive- To subject (glass or metal) to a process of heating and slow cooling in order to toughen and reduce brittleness.
- To strengthen or harden.
verb, intransitive To become strengthened or hardened: “the time she needed for opinion to anneal around her policy” (Alexander M. Haig, Jr.)
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