downsize
[ doun-sahyz ]
/ ˈdaʊnˌsaɪz /
Save This Word!
verb (used with object), down·sized, down·siz·ing.
to design or manufacture a smaller version or type of: The automotive industry downsized its cars for improved fuel economy.
to reduce in number; cut back.
adjective
Also downsized . being of a smaller size or version: a downsize car.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON “ITS” VS. “IT’S”!
Apostrophes can be tricky; prove you know the difference between it’s and its in this crafty quiz!
Question 1 of 12
On the farm, the feed for chicks is significantly different from the roosters’; ______ not even comparable.
Words nearby downsize
downs, downscale, downshift, downshifting, downside, downsize, downslide, down someone's throat, downspin, downspout, Down's syndrome
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for downsize
British Dictionary definitions for downsize
downsize
/ (ˈdaʊnˌsaɪz) /
verb -sizes, -sizing or -sized (tr)
to reduce the operating costs of a company by reducing the number of people it employs
to reduce the size of or produce a smaller version of (something)
to upgrade (a computer system) by replacing a mainframe or minicomputer with a network of microcomputersCompare rightsize
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 downsize
downsize
To reduce in number, especially personnel: “The company decided to downsize half the workers in the aircraft division.” It can also be used in reference to objects: “I decided to downsize my wardrobe and threw out all my old T-shirts.”
notes for downsize
Downsize is a recent euphemism for “fire, lay off.” Company managers often use this term in an attempt to soften the blow of wide-scale layoffs.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.