Intense

How to spell intense

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce intense

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does intense mean?

1. adjectiveExisting or occurring in a very high degree; extreme in strength, force, or feeling.

Intense in a sentence

• The intense heat of the afternoon made the office unbearable.

• She felt intense pressure to finish the report before the deadline.

Where does intense come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin intensus, the past participle of intendere, which literally meant 'to stretch toward' or 'to strain'. That verb was built from the prefix in-, meaning 'toward', and tendere, meaning 'to stretch', the same root that gives English words such as tension, tendon, and extend. The original image was of something stretched tight, like a bowstring under strain, and from that physical tautness came the figurative idea of heightened force or concentration. English adopted intense through Old French in the late 1300s, first describing things drawn tight or strong in degree. The spelling preserves the -tens- of tendere, which is why the trickiest moment is remembering the final -se rather than a -ce ending.

How the word is built

• in- (toward, into)
• tens (from tendere: to stretch)
• -e