Where does the uplifting phrasal verb “brighten up” come from? The verb brighten originates from Old English beorht (“bright, shining, clear”), which is related to the Proto-Germanic root berhtaz (“bright, light”). Over time, it came to mean not only literal brightness (like light shining) but also metaphorical brightness, referring to mood or atmosphere. The particle up intensifies the action, giving us brighten up, which means both “to become lighter or sunnier” and “to look or feel happier.” For example: “The room brightened up when she entered.” / “He always brightens up when he talks about music.” Using phrasal verbs like brighten up is crucial in real English conversations, as they add a natural, idiomatic flow that single verbs often cannot fully capture.
In Turkish, brighten up can be expressed as “neşelenmek”, “canlanmak”, or “aydınlanmak” depending on context. For example: “Haberleri duyunca yüzü aydınlandı” (Her face brightened up when she heard the news). Another example: “Çocukları görünce neşelendi” (She brightened up when she saw the children). Sometimes, it also refers to weather: “Hava öğleden sonra açıldı” (The weather brightened up in the afternoon).
Here are some anonymous English quotes with the word brighten up:
- “Even the smallest candle can brighten up the darkest night.”
- “A true friend knows how to brighten up your mood without saying a word.”
- “Kind words can brighten up the heaviest of hearts.”
- “Gratitude can brighten up the simplest of days.”
And here are some quotes from well-known figures that use brighten or brighten up:
- William Butler Yeats: “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire that will brighten [up] the world.”
- Maya Angelou: “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud. You may brighten [up] their day without even knowing it.”
- Charles Dickens: “There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast. It is not in vain that the sun shines, and the fires burn, to brighten [up] the gloom.”
- Mother Teresa: “Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love and can brighten [up] the hearts of others.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year. Your cheerful spirit will brighten [up] all within its reach.”
Note. Originally there is no particle in the quotes above. However, we can replace “brighten” with “brighten up” in all of the qutotes above. The difference is that they become more conversational, uplifting, everyday speech, when used with the particle “up”. Without the particle “up”, they are more formal, literary, timeless.
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