abridged

American  

[uh-brijd] / əˈbrɪdʒd /

adjective

1. (of a book, document, presentation, etc.) shortened by omitting less important parts while retaining the basic content.

   I didn't realize it was an abridged audiobook until I was surprised by how fast it was over.

2. reduced or lessened in duration, scope, authority, etc.; diminished or curtailed.

   Any time anyone's opportunity to vote is hampered, we need to do whatever we can to see that those abridged rights are faced, challenged, and changed.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of abridge.

Etymology

Origin of abridged

abridge ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

In 1991, Knopf published an abridged version of the journals with the Cheever family’s assistance.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 17, 2025

This followed a 13-part, 13-hour series—Vietnam: A Television History—that premiered on PBS over 30 years earlier, in 1983, before being rebroadcast in abridged form on public television’s American Experience in 1997.

From Slate • Apr. 30, 2025

There are abridged biographies of certain people throughout the book.

From Salon • Dec. 28, 2024

If there’s a disadvantage to this abridged election, Stutzman said, it’s the limited time Harris has to introduce herself.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 25, 2024

I picked up the terms when Mr. Owen made us read an abridged version of Moby- Dick in ninth grade.

From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin

Related Words

• deficient
• fragmentary
• inadequate
• insufficient
• lacking
• partial
• sketchy