curtail

verb

cur·​tail (ˌ)kər-ˈtāl 

curtailed; curtailing; curtails

transitive verb

: to make less by or as if by cutting off or away some part

curtail the power of the executive branch

curtail inflation

Some school activities are being curtailed due to a lack of funds.

curtailer

(ˌ)kər-ˈtā-lər 

noun

Synonyms of curtail

• shorten

Choose the Right Synonym for curtail

shorten, curtail, abbreviate, abridge, retrench mean to reduce in extent.

shorten implies reduction in length or duration.

shorten a speech

curtail adds an implication of cutting that in some way deprives of completeness or adequacy.

ceremonies curtailed because of rain

abbreviate implies a making shorter usually by omitting some part.

using an abbreviated title

abridge implies a reduction in compass or scope with retention of essential elements and a relative completeness in the result.

the abridged version of the novel

retrench suggests a reduction in extent or costs of something felt to be excessive.

declining business forced the company to retrench

Examples of curtail in a Sentence

The new laws are an effort to curtail illegal drug use.

School activities are being curtailed due to a lack of funds.

Recent Examples on the Web

And, even if Díaz-Canel again invited Cubans abroad to invest in the country and promised a new legal framework to protect investments, Cuba’s repressive laws curtailing citizen rights, including property rights, are still in place. —Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 18 June 2026

Roundup cancer claims An ongoing battle over whether the popular Roundup weedkiller causes cancer could get curtailed or supercharged depending on whether the justices allow the manufacturer to be sued for failing to warn of cancer risks from the active ingredient glyphosate. —Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 17 June 2026

City leaders, Democratic lawmakers and others have often pushed to enact stricter gun regulations in an effort to curtail the violence. —Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 17 June 2026

Democrats in Congress have voiced their intention to curtail the Administration’s operations in Venezuela. —Stephania Taladrid, New Yorker, 17 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

by folk etymology from earlier curtal to dock an animal's tail, from curtal, noun, animal with a docked tail, from Middle French courtault — more at curtal

First Known Use

1580, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for curtail

• airmail
• assail
• avail
• bewail
• blackmail
• cattail
• cocktail
• derail
• detail
• dovetail
• email
• entail

Kids Definition

curtail

verb

cur·​tail (ˌ)kər-ˈtā(ə)l 

: to make less by or as if by cutting off part of

curtailer

-ˈtā-lər 

noun

curtailment

-ˈtāl-mənt

noun