quickening Definition

quicken
verb quickened, quickening

tr & intr
1. To make or become quicker; to accelerate.

Example: Her heart quickened when she saw him
Thesaurus: speed, accelerate, pick up speed, expedite, hasten, hurry.
2. To stimulate, rouse or stir (interest or imagination, etc).

Thesaurus: animate, rouse, energize, enliven, excite, revive, stimulate, incite; Antonym: dull, retard.
intr
3a. Said of a baby in the womb: to begin to move perceptibly;
intr
3b. Said of a pregnant woman: to begin to feel her baby's movements.

Derivative: quickener
noun

Derivative: quickening
adj, noun

Etymology: 16c in sense 3; 14c, meaning ‘to give or receive life'.