curtail
1 Americanverb (used with object)
noun
-
a horizontal, spiral termination to the lower end of a stair railing.
-
Also called curtail step. a starting step having a scroll termination to one or both ends of the tread.
verb
Related Words
See shorten.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of curtail1
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English curtailen “to restrict” (said of royal succession or inheritance), probably a conflation of Middle French courtau(l)d ( see curtal) and Middle English taillen “to cut” ( see taille, tailor 1)
Origin of curtail2
Probably alteration, by folk etymology, of curtal
Explanation
To curtail something is to slow it down, put restrictions on it, or stop it entirely. If I give up cake, I am curtailing my cake-eating. Curtail is an official-sounding word for stopping or slowing things down. The police try to curtail crime — they want there to be less crime in the world. A company may want to curtail their employees' computer time, so they spend more time working and less time goofing around. Teachers try to curtail whispering and note-passing in class. When something is curtailed, it's either stopped entirely or stopped quite a bit — it's cut short.
Vocabulary lists containing curtail
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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30 GRE Words Beginning with "B" & "C"
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This Week in Words: Feb. 25 - Mar. 2, 2018
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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.
None of it, however, has seemed to curtail fan interest in the series.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
Despite her efforts to curtail his behavior at home, the very technology bought by schools to help democratize learning had become the medium through which he fell deeper down his rabbit hole.
From Slate • May 12, 2026
Still, Iran may curtail production fairly aggressively in the face of the continued U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Halff said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 29, 2026
Other fears lurking for banks include the risk that the war in Iran could drive inflation higher and curtail dealmaking.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026
But now I understand the gravity of what I was proposing— that a four-year-old child be watchful, prudent, and shrewd, that I curtail your happiness, that you submit to a loss of time.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
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.
