transitive verb
- to produce fermentation in (dough or batter), consequently causing the dough or batter to rise in the process of baking.
The dough is leavened with yeast. - to enliven or change with a subtle, pervasive influence.
The story is leavened by her sense of comic irony.
noun
- a substance, such as yeast, that produces fermentation in a dough or batter and causes it to rise.
- an element that has a subtle, enlivening, or modifying effect; leavening.
the leaven of humor.