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.

See antonyms for contract on Thesaurus.com

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Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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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

Who among Scalise's constituents could possibly care if he supported naming a post office for a black judge who died in 1988?
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Her post-crown fame, though, only further begs the question: Why has there not been another Jewish Miss America since 1945?
Why Was Bess Myerson the First and Last Jewish Miss America?|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Women are more likely to recover sooner from birth and less likely to experience post-partum depression.
How Good Dads Can Change the World|Gary Barker, PhD, Michael Kaufman|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Another set of hackers that goes by the name the Lizard Squad told the Washington Post that they helped with the Sony hack.
U.S. Spies Say They Tracked ‘Sony Hackers’ For Years|Shane Harris|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST

In the wake of this turmoil, the New York Post reported that the police had stopped policing.
Ground Zero of the NYPD Slowdown|Batya Ungar-Sargon|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I waited three months more, in great impatience, then sent him back to the same post, to see if there might be a reply.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman
If Mac had been alone he would have made the post by sundown, for the Mounted Police rode picked horses, the best money could buy.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
The Café tender was asleep in his chair; the porter had gone off; the sentinel alone kept awake on his post.
Glances at Europe|Horace Greeley
Harry had no further adventures in reaching Fulton, and at once reported to Captain Duffield, who was in command of the post.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
This, of course, I always gave to the guide to use in sending the letter when he got to the trading-post.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman

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