alléger

In a sentence

• J'ai allégé le poids de mon sac en retirant quelques objets inutiles.

  I reduced the weight of my bag by removing some unnecessary items.

  In this sentence, 'alléger' is used to indicate the action of lightening or reducing weight, applied to a physical object, in this case, a bag.

• Pour alléger le budget, nous avons opté pour des solutions moins coûteuses.

  To ease the budget, we opted for less expensive solutions.

  Here, 'alléger' is employed in a metaphorical sense to mean easing or reducing, applied to a budget as an abstract concept.

• Elle a essayé d'alléger la situation en faisant une blague.

  She tried to lighten the situation by telling a joke.

  In this instance, 'alléger' refers to making something less serious or intense, relating to the mood or atmosphere of a situation.