curtail
1 Americanverb (used with object)
noun
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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
Synonym Usage
See shorten.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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curtailsimple
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curtailssimple
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have curtailedperfect
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has curtailedperfect
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am curtailingprogressive
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are curtailingprogressive
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is curtailingprogressive
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have been curtailingperfect progressive
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has been curtailingperfect progressive
Past
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curtailedsimple
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had curtailedperfect
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was curtailingprogressive
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were curtailingprogressive
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had been curtailingperfect progressive
Future
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.
But the reopening of the strait would ease storage constraints in the Persian Gulf that had forced countries in the region to curtail production.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 15, 2026
He called for politicians globally to act to curtail addictive forms of gambling and prevent consumers being "fleeced" during the World Cup.
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
None of it, however, has seemed to curtail fan interest in the series.
From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2026
The company noted it has taken initial steps to partially curtail production at Louisiana and Bartow, and that it is scaling back additional production in Brazil.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 11, 2026
By submitting guests to a mild form of the distemper, which should last for some few weeks, he might greatly curtail the mortality of his acquaintance and their households.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
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.
