The gradual softening of the clay under prolonged moisture allowed the potter to reshape the vessel into a more elegant form.
在持续潮湿下，黏土的逐渐软化使陶工能够将器皿重塑成更优雅的形状。
Which choice best defines “softening”?
A — The process of becoming softer. “softening” means the process of becoming softer.
Which word means “the process of becoming softer”?
A — softening. “softening” means the process of becoming softer.
softening — the process of becoming softer. In Chinese: 软化.
softening is pronounced /ˈsɒfnɪŋ/.
The gradual softening of the clay under prolonged moisture allowed the potter to reshape the vessel into a more elegant form. (在持续潮湿下，黏土的逐渐软化使陶工能够将器皿重塑成更优雅的形状。)
melting, weakening, mitigation — all close in meaning to softening (the process of becoming softer).
hardening, strengthening — each the opposite of softening (the process of becoming softer).
Yes. softening is on the SAT Prep Basic list — the everyday academic words the SAT assumes you already have. The Digital SAT does not test vocabulary in isolation; words like this one are tested through Words in Context questions, where you choose the word that completes a passage most logically and precisely.