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retrench

[ ri-trench ]
/ rɪˈtrɛntʃ /
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See synonyms for retrench on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
to cut down, reduce, or diminish; curtail (expenses).
to cut off or remove.
Military. to protect by a retrenchment.
verb (used without object)
to economize; reduce expenses: They retrenched by eliminating half of the workers.
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Origin of retrench

1600–10; <French retrencher (obsolete variant of retrancher), Middle French retrenchier, equivalent to re-re- + trenchier to trench

OTHER WORDS FROM retrench

re·trench·a·ble, adjectivere·trench·er, nounun·re·trench·a·ble, adjectiveun·re·trenched, adjective

Words nearby retrench

retral, retread, retreat, retreatant, retreatism, retrench, retrenchment, retrial, retribution, retributive, retributivism
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to retrench

conserve, curtail, cut down, economize, reduce, scrimp, trim, abridge, confine, decrease, delete, diminish, eliminate, lessen, limit, omit, remove, save, shorten, slash

How to use retrench in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for retrench

retrench
/ (rɪˈtrɛntʃ) /
verb
to reduce or curtail (costs); economize
(tr) to shorten, delete, or abridge
(tr) to protect by a retrenchment

Derived forms of retrench

retrenchable, adjective

Word Origin for retrench

C17: from Old French retrenchier, from re- + trenchier to cut, from Latin truncāre to lop; see trench
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
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