broadening vs increase

broadening and increase both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
broadening	Yes	No	No	No
increase	Yes	No	Yes	No

As nouns, increase is a hypernym of broadening; that is, increase is a word with a broader meaning than broadening:

broadening: an increase in width
increase: a process of becoming larger or longer or more numerous or more important

Other hypernyms of broadening include growth, increment.

broadening (noun)	increase (noun)
the action of making broader	the act of increasing something
the act of making something wider	the amount by which something increases
an increase in width	a change resulting in an increase
	a process of becoming larger or longer or more numerous or more important
	a quantity that is added

broadening (verb)	increase (verb)
	become bigger or greater in amount
	make bigger or more