shorten
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
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to make or become short or shorter
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(tr) nautical to reduce the area of (sail)
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(tr) to make (pastry, bread, etc) short, by adding butter or another fat
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gambling to cause (the odds) to lessen or (of odds) to become less
Related Words
Shorten, abbreviate, abridge, curtail mean to make shorter or briefer. Shorten is a general word meaning to make less in extent or duration: to shorten a dress, a prisoner's sentence. The other three terms suggest methods of shortening. To abbreviate is to make shorter by omission or contraction: to abbreviate a word. To abridge is to reduce in length or size by condensing, summarizing, and the like: to abridge a document. Curtail suggests deprivation and lack of completeness because of omitting some part: to curtail an explanation.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of shorten
Vocabulary lists containing shorten
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.
"If we can shorten the timeline and help people see benefits sooner, it may encourage them to keep exercising."
From Science Daily • May 16, 2026
The package would allow developers to build housing with fewer parking spaces and would shorten timelines for construction-permit reviews.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
They plan to shorten waits for gynaecology care, have fewer painful procedures without informed consent or pain relief choices, and provide easier access to contraception.
From BBC • May 11, 2026
There was a machinery working to shorten his punishment.
From Salon • Apr. 21, 2026
The strain will shorten his circle each time.
From "The Old Man and The Sea" by Ernest Hemingway
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.
