shrunken

[shruhng-kuhn]

verb

1. a past participle of shrink.

adjective

1. contracted or lessened in size, extent, or scope.

   Many state agencies are operating with a shrunken workforce.

shrunken

/ ˈʃrʌŋkən /

verb

1. a past participle of shrink

adjective

1. (usually prenominal) reduced in size

   a shrunken head

Other Word Forms

• unshrunken adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of shrunken¹

First recorded before 1000, for the adjective

Example Sentences

On top of a degraded infrastructure, it would have to contend with a shrunken military and new threats such as drones.

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“Babushkinovs,” she said, and tapped the top of the wrinkled, shrunken potato.

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If we continue with MAGA’s “Fortress America,” we will be just another shrunken relic of past greatness.

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But rebuilding agencies that have been radically shrunken would take much longer than cutting them down, the scholars said.

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With the addition of Frankie Garcia as lead singer, Bobby and the Classics renamed themselves the Headhunters after a shrunken head that Jaramillo hung on the rearview mirror of his ’49 Chevy.

Read more on Los Angeles Times