shrink

verb \ ˈshriŋk , especially Southern ˈsriŋk \

|Updated on: 17 Aug 2018

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Examples: shrink in a Sentence

Definition of shrink

shrank play \ˈshraŋk, ˈsraŋk\ or shrunk play \ˈshrəŋk, ˈsrəŋk\; shrunk or shrunken play \ˈshrəŋ-kən, ˈsrəŋ-\; shrinking

intransitive verb

1 : to contract or curl up the body or part of it : huddle, cower

2 a : to contract to less extent or compass

b : to become smaller or more compacted

c : to lose substance or weight

d : to lessen in value : dwindle

3 a : to recoil instinctively (as from something painful or horrible)

shrank from the challenge

b : to hold oneself back : refrain

did not shrink from telling the truth

transitive verb

: to cause to contract or shrink; specifically : to compact (cloth) by causing to contract when subjected to washing, boiling, steaming, or other processes

—

shrinkable

play \ˈshriŋ-kə-bəl, ˈsriŋ-\ adjective

—

shrinker

noun

See shrink defined for English-language learners

See shrink defined for kids

Examples of shrink in a Sentence

The sweater shrank when it was washed.
Meat shrinks as it cooks.
The town's population shrank during the war.
Hot water shrank the sweater.
The treatment should shrink the tumor.
He shrank in horror when he saw the dead cat.

Recent Examples of shrink from the Web

So far this year, assets in the Core ETF have jumped by $16.1 billion while the legacy fund, which costs four times as much, has shrunk by $11.8 billion.

— asjylyn loder, WSJ, "Investors Win From ETF Price War," 12 July 2018
Hope, Janet, and Hank are waiting in the real, life-size world, while Scott shrinks down.

— alex abad-santos, Vox, "Ant-Man and the Wasp’s post-credits scenes, explained," 6 July 2018
The industry’s argument for dropping the leasing rule is that residential CLECs are an insignificant part of the business now and are shrinking at a rapid clip.

— michael hiltzik, latimes.com, "Sonic is a small ISP that competes brilliantly with the big guys — so they're trying to throttle its business," 5 July 2018
The state's public sector union membership in labor unions has grown during the last four decades, even as private sector union membership has shrunk.

— adam ashton, sacbee, "Now they have a choice. Will California teachers and cops stay in their unions?," 1 July 2018
After the spareribs have been grilling for 1 hour, baste them with the mop and continue to baste them every 30 minutes until the meat has shrunk back from the rib bones about 1/2 inch and the meat is tender enough to tear with your fingers.

— susan selasky, Detroit Free Press, "Ribs 101: Pitmasters offer advice on cooking ribs," 1 July 2018
That is bad news for a country where the share of women in the workforce has shrunk to around 24 percent in the fiscal year ended 2016 from 36 percent a decade earlier.

— anirban nag, Bloomberg.com, "Maternity Perks May Cost 1.8 Million Indian Women Their Jobs," 27 June 2018
Just as the Astros shrunk the Blue Jays' lead to 5-4, Keuchel's resurgence fizzled out in the sixth.

— hunter atkins, Houston Chronicle, "Alex Bregman delivers another walkoff win for Astros," 27 June 2018
Discretionary spending, by contrast, is expected to remain steady and even shrink in coming years.

— NBC News, "CBO: Ballooning national debt could hurt U.S. economy, increase likelihood of crisis," 26 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'shrink.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of shrink

Middle English, from Old English scrincan; akin to Middle Dutch schrinken to draw back

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

shrink Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of shrink

contract, shrink, condense, compress, constrict, deflate mean to decrease in bulk or volume. contract applies to a drawing together of surfaces or particles or a reduction of area or length.

- caused her muscles to contract

shrink implies a contracting or a loss of material and stresses a falling short of original dimensions.

- the sweater will shrink when washed

condense implies a reducing of something homogeneous to greater compactness without significant loss of content.

- condense the essay into a paragraph

compress implies a pressing into a small compass and definite shape usually against resistance.

- compressed cotton into bales

constrict implies a tightening that reduces diameter.

- the throat is constricted by a tight collar

deflate implies a contracting by reducing the internal pressure of contained air or gas.

- deflate the balloon

recoil, shrink, flinch, wince, blench, quail mean to draw back in fear or distaste. recoil implies a start or movement away through shock, fear, or disgust.

- recoiled at the suggestion of stealing

shrink suggests an instinctive recoil through sensitiveness, scrupulousness, or cowardice.

- shrank from the unpleasant truth

flinch implies a failure to endure pain or face something dangerous or frightening with resolution.

- faced her accusers without flinching

wince suggests a slight involuntary physical reaction (such as a start or recoiling).

- winced in pain

blench implies fainthearted flinching.

- stood their ground without blenching

quail suggests shrinking and cowering in fear.

- quailed before the apparition

shrink

noun

Definition of shrink

1 : the act of shrinking

2 : shrinkage

[short for headshrinker]

: a clinical psychiatrist or psychologist

See shrink defined for English-language learners

Examples of shrink in a Sentence

He is seeing a shrink.

Recent Examples of shrink from the Web

But again, that doesn’t mean all this offseason drama couldn’t bite them down the line in the playoffs, when the margin for error shrinks.

— albert breer, SI.com, "Dolphins Reset, Patriots Regroup, NFL Recharges," 4 June 2018
In Europe, too, demand for low-skilled labor will only increase as the continent's population ages and, in some cases, shrinks.

— ishaan tharoor, Washington Post, "Does the West actually face a migration crisis?," 28 June 2018
Many investors have abandoned stock pickers as the U.S. stock market shrinks and money surges into low-cost indexes.

— dawn lim, WSJ, "How One Small School’s Endowment Is Topping the Class," 24 June 2018
Not only have total originations of new loans declined as the refinance market shrinks because of rising interest rates, but many lenders could be staring at red ink and staff layoffs, as well.

— kenneth r. harney, courant.com, "As Lender Competition Grows, Homebuyers Can Reap Bargains," 7 June 2018
Not only have total originations of new loans declined as the refinance market shrinks because of rising interest rates, but many lenders could be staring at red ink and staff layoffs as well.

— kenneth r. harney, chicagotribune.com, "Mortgage lenders are struggling this year. Homebuyers may reap bargains.," 5 June 2018
As the Republican base in California shrinks, religious conservatives become an even more important part of the party’s coalition, said Dan Schnur, a longtime Republican consultant in California who is now an independent.

— elizabeth dias, New York Times, "The Evangelical Fight to Win Back California," 27 May 2018
Perhaps the apt comparison here is to Woody Allen, reconfiguring his idea of Jewish misfortune as wryness and working it out with a shrink.

— constance grady, Vox, "Your guide to the 17 most important nominees at this year’s Tonys," 7 June 2018
Again, access to transportation improves a little in the Northern Hemisphere and a lot in the Southern Hemisphere, but the total energy shrinks.

— scott k. johnson, Ars Technica, "Want to halt global warming and raise living standards? Get efficient," 5 June 2018

First Known Use of shrink

1590

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

SHRINK Defined for English Language Learners

shrink

verb

Definition of shrink for English Language Learners

: to become smaller in amount, size, or value
: to make (something) smaller in amount, size, or value
: to quickly move away from something shocking, frightening, or disgusting

shrink

noun

Definition of shrink for English Language Learners

: a psychiatrist or psychologist

SHRINK Defined for Kids

shrink

verb \ ˈshriŋk \

Definition of shrink for Students

shrank \ˈshraŋk\ or shrunk \ˈshrəŋk\; shrunk or shrunken \ˈshrəŋ-kən\; shrinking

1 : to make or become smaller

The sweater shrank when it got wet.

2 : to curl up or move back in or as if in fear or pain

Just the thought of all this made Tom shrink back uncomfortably in his chair.
—Andrew Clements, Frindle

3 : to refrain from doing something especially because of difficulty or unpleasantness

He did not shrink from telling the truth.

Medical Dictionary

shrink

noun \ ˈshriŋk \

medical Definition of shrink

: a clinical psychiatrist or psychologist — called also headshrinker

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See words that rhyme with shrink Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for shrink Spanish Central: Translation of shrink Nglish: Translation of shrink for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of shrink for Arabic speakers

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Definition of shrink

shrinkable

shrinker

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shrink Synonyms

Synonyms

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shrink

Definition of shrink

Examples of shrink in a Sentence

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SHRINK Defined for English Language Learners

shrink

Definition of shrink for English Language Learners

shrink

Definition of shrink for English Language Learners

SHRINK Defined for Kids

shrink

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Medical Dictionary

shrink

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