shorten
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to make or become short or shorter
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(tr) nautical to reduce the area of (sail)
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(tr) to make (pastry, bread, etc) short, by adding butter or another fat
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gambling to cause (the odds) to lessen or (of odds) to become less
Related Words
Shorten, abbreviate, abridge, curtail mean to make shorter or briefer. Shorten is a general word meaning to make less in extent or duration: to shorten a dress, a prisoner's sentence. The other three terms suggest methods of shortening. To abbreviate is to make shorter by omission or contraction: to abbreviate a word. To abridge is to reduce in length or size by condensing, summarizing, and the like: to abridge a document. Curtail suggests deprivation and lack of completeness because of omitting some part: to curtail an explanation.
Other Word Forms
- overshorten verb
- preshorten verb (used with object)
- reshorten verb
- shortener noun
- undershorten verb (used with object)
- unshorten adjective
Etymology
Origin of shorten
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
However, weather conditions can shorten the process to four days or prolong it for as long as a month, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
From Los Angeles Times
She uses a shortened version of her name in court because the case was filed by her mother when she was a minor.
HKEx is also dedicated to improving its market's structure and efficiency, including shortening stock clearing time, she said.
From Barron's
I also tried shortening my days to seven hours instead of 10.
From MarketWatch
She explained that these models could shorten the time needed to evaluate potential preventive therapies.
From Science Daily
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
