/ ˈheɪsn; NAmE / verb
1.
[ v to inf ] to say or do sth without delay :
She saw his frown and hastened to explain.
He has been described as a 'charmless bore'—not by me, I hasten to add .
2.
[ vn ] ( formal ) to make sth happen sooner or more quickly :
The treatment she received may, in fact, have hastened her death.
News of the scandal certainly hastened his departure from office.
3.
[ v + adv. / prep. ] ( literary ) to go or move somewhere quickly
SYN hurry
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent.: extended form of haste , on the pattern of verbs in -en .