contract

[ noun, adjective, and usually for verb 14-16, 21, 22 kon-trakt; otherwise verb kuhn-trakt ]

/ noun, adjective, and usually for verb 14-16, 21, 22 ˈkɒn trækt; otherwise verb kənˈtrækt /

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See synonyms for: contract / contracted / contracting / contracts on Thesaurus.com

noun

an agreement between two or more parties for the doing or not doing of something specified.

an agreement enforceable by law.

the written form of an agreement enforceable by law.

the division of law dealing with contracts.

Also called contract bridge . a variety of bridge in which the side that wins the bid can earn toward game only that number of tricks named in the contract, additional points being credited above the line.Compare auction bridge.

(in auction or contract bridge)

a commitment by the declarer and their partner to take six tricks plus the number specified by the final bid made.
the final bid that specifies the number of tricks to which players must commit.
the number of tricks to which players are committed, plus six.

the formal agreement of marriage; betrothal.

Slang. an arrangement for a hired assassin to kill a specific person.

adjective

under an agreement enforceable by law; governed or arranged by special legal agreement: As a contract carrier with us, you'll have access to more loads than with any other provider in North America.

verb (used with object)

to draw together; make shorter, thinner, narrower, etc.: In order to contract a muscle, the opposite muscle group has to be relaxed.

to shorten (a word, phrase, etc.) by combining or omitting some of its elements: Contracting “do not” yields “don't.”

to get or acquire, as by exposure to something contagious: I contracted malaria but didn't recognize the symptoms at first.

to incur, as a liability or obligation: He was very extravagant at college, and contracted many debts.

to settle or establish by agreement: Bismarck contracted an alliance with Austria to counteract Russian designs in Eastern Europe.

to assign (a job, work, project, etc.) by contract: The publisher contracted the artwork.

to enter into an agreement with: We contracted a freelancer to do the editing.

to enter into (friendship, acquaintance, etc.).

to betroth.

to wrinkle: to contract the brows.

verb (used without object)

to become reduced in length, width, thickness, etc., by drawing together; become smaller: The pupils of his eyes contracted in the light.

to enter into an agreement: We contracted to have the books printed and bound by Willow Press.

Verb Phrases

contract out, to hire an outside contractor to produce or do.

OTHER WORDS FOR contract

10 reduce, shorten, lessen, narrow, shrivel, shrink.

See synonyms for contract on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR contract

10 expand.

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QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about contract

put out a contract on, Slang. to hire or attempt to hire an assassin to kill (someone): The mob put out a contract on the informer.

Origin of contract

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English noun contract, contrait, from Old French, from Latin contractus “undertaking a transaction, agreement” (equivalent to contrac-, stem of contrahere “to draw in, bring together, enter into an agreement” + -tus verbal noun suffix); the verb is from Latin contractus, past participle of contrahere

synonym study for contract

1. See agreement. 10. Contract, compress, concentrate, condense imply retaining original content but reducing the amount of space occupied. Contract means to cause to draw more closely together: to contract a muscle. Compress suggests fusing to become smaller by means of fairly uniform external pressure: to compress gases into liquid form. Concentrate implies causing to gather around a point: to concentrate troops near an objective; to concentrate one's strength. Condense implies increasing the compactness, or thickening the consistency of a homogeneous mass: to condense milk. It is also used to refer to the reducing in length of a book or the like.

OTHER WORDS FROM contract

con·tract·ee

[kon-trak-tee], /ˌkɒn trækˈti/, nouncon·tract·i·ble, adjectivecon·tract·i·bil·i·ty

[kuhn-trak-tuh-bil-i-tee], /kənˌtræk təˈbɪl ɪ ti/, con·tract·i·ble·ness, nouncon·tract·i·bly, adverb

non·con·tract, adjectiveo·ver·con·tract, verb (used with object)post·con·tract, nounre·con·tract, verb (used with object)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use contract in a sentence

Luminar and Mobileye’s agreement while small at the moment is still a production contract.
Mobileye taps Luminar to supply lidar for its robotaxi fleet|Kirsten Korosec|November 20, 2020|TechCrunch
Engel-Natzke was the main point of contact while her dad was in the hospital, with her mother, Maggie, also contracting the virus at the same time.
Emily Engel-Natzke’s dad was her ‘biggest fan.’ He died of covid-19 before her hockey triumph.|Samantha Pell|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
He also revealed that two of his family members, his wife and one of his three children, contracted the coronavirus as well.
Cowboys QB Andy Dalton says covid-19 ‘hit me hard’ after concussion|Des Bieler|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
After two injury-plagued years, though, Oladipo must prove he is still an elite player worthy of a major long-term contract.
NBA free agency tracker (plus trades): Warriors acquire Kelly Oubre; 76ers trade Al Horford to Thunder|Ben Golliver|November 20, 2020|Washington Post

The Big Ten requires players who contract the virus to sit out for 21 days so they can go through cardiac screening before returning to the field.
Maryland, with 15 more players and its coach positive for coronavirus, cancels Michigan State game|Emily Giambalvo|November 19, 2020|Washington Post
As the New York Times writes, the risk of contracting Ebola in this country remains "vanishingly small."
The Sham, Scaremongering Guide to Ebola|Abby Haglage|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But it is unfounded fear by an American public at minimal risk of contracting the illness that is confounding those efforts.
Quarantine Turns Ebola Heroes Into Pariahs|Russell Saunders|October 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The military maintains that the risk of contracting the virus is minimal.
U.S. Soldiers Get Just Four Hours of Ebola Training|Tim Mak|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For the overwhelming majority of people in this country, the likelihood of contracting it is fleetingly small.
Parents’ Ebola Panic Is Taking Over My Clinic|Russell Saunders|October 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
What remains unclear is just how many women McFarland may have knowingly put in danger of contracting HIV.
Alabama Church Says HIV-Positive Preacher Slept With Flock|Matthew Paul Turner|October 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The whole thing begins to have a jigsaw look, like a child's toy rack with wooden soldiers on it, expanding and contracting.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
Again, he may have lucid intervals during which he is quite as capable of contracting as other persons.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles
The company is composed of three contracting persons without admitting therein any other whatever.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2)|Francis Trevithick
The savages, one by one, broke away from the group and began to circle rapidly to the left in a constantly contracting spiral.
Blazed Trail Stories|Stewart Edward White
It was not, however, to enter Spain without the agreement of both contracting parties.
The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte|William Milligan Sloane

British Dictionary definitions for contract

contract

verb (kənˈtrækt)

to make or become smaller, narrower, shorter, etcmetals contract as the temperature is reduced

(ˈkɒntrækt) (when intr, sometimes foll by for; when tr, may take an infinitive) to enter into an agreement with (a person, company, etc) to deliver (goods or services) or to do (something) on mutually agreed and binding terms, often in writing

to draw or be drawn together; coalesce or cause to coalesce

(tr) to acquire, incur, or become affected by (a disease, liability, debt, etc)

(tr) to shorten (a word or phrase) by the omission of letters or syllables, usually indicated in writing by an apostrophe

phonetics to unite (two vowels) or (of two vowels) to be united within a word or at a word boundary so that a new long vowel or diphthong is formed

(tr) to wrinkle or draw together (the brow or a muscle)

(tr) to arrange (a marriage) for; betroth

noun (ˈkɒntrækt)

a formal agreement between two or more parties

a document that states the terms of such an agreement

the branch of law treating of contracts

marriage considered as a formal agreement

See contract bridge

bridge

(in the bidding sequence before play) the highest bid, which determines trumps and the number of tricks one side must try to make
the number and suit of these tricks

slang

a criminal agreement to kill a particular person in return for an agreed sum of money
(as modifier)a contract killing

Derived forms of contract

contractible, adjectivecontractibly, adverb

Word Origin for contract

C16: from Latin contractus agreement, something drawn up, from contrahere to draw together, from trahere to draw

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for contract

contract

A legally binding agreement between two or more parties.

contract

OTHER WORDS FOR contract

OPPOSITES FOR contract

Idioms about contract

Origin of contract

synonym study for contract

OTHER WORDS FROM contract

Words related to contract

How to use contract in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for contract

Derived forms of contract

Word Origin for contract

Cultural definitions for contract