truncate

verb trun·cate \ ˈtrəŋ-ˌkāt , ˈtrən- \

Updated on: 14 May 2018

Definition of truncate

truncated; truncating

transitive verb

1 : to shorten by or as if by cutting off

2 : to replace (an edge or corner of a crystal) by a plane

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truncation

play \trəŋ-ˈkā-shən, trən-\ noun

See truncate defined for English-language learners

truncate was our Word of the Day on 10/08/2016. Hear the podcast!

Examples of truncate in a Sentence

a truncated version of the 11 o'clock newscast followed the awards show, which ran over its time slot—as it always does

Recent Examples of truncate from the Web

In a freshman season last spring truncated by his recovery from an ACL injury suffered as a senior at McDonogh, Matt Woodson had eight goals and five assists in 10 games, including six starts.

— edward lee, baltimoresun.com, "Men’s lacrosse notes: Salisbury looking forward to 'opportunity' against York," 4 May 2018
Here is my proposed, truncated, fan-friendly U.S. major professional team sports calendar: NFL: September to December.

— norman chad, San Antonio Express-News, "Norman Chad: End the endless baseball season," 23 Apr. 2018
Amani Bledsoe, who was recruited just after the aforementioned staff shakeup, has the potential to blow up plays from multiple defensive line positions, but his first two seasons were truncated because of a one-year NCAA suspension.

— andy staples, SI.com, "Lincoln Riley Prepares to Lead Oklahoma Into Life After Baker Mayfield," 19 Mar. 2018
But overall, only a third of cases resolved last year were fully investigated, with many of them truncated because a complainant or witness stopped cooperating or couldn’t be found.

— New York Times, "Police, at Odds with Oversight Board, Reject More of Its Penalties," 12 Apr. 2018
The partners plan to truncate the Montchanin course, currently the shortest of three courses at the club, while leaving the two others at 18 holes.

— joseph n. distefano, Philly.com, "Ben du Pont and Don Wirth buy DuPont Country Club, will invest $18M," 5 Apr. 2018
So the Census Bureau over the decades has truncated the survey to data necessary to administer federal laws and project population growth—such as gender, race, age, household size and home ownership.

— the editorial board, WSJ, "Citizenship and the Census," 1 Apr. 2018
Edits happen without warning and truncate sentences throughout.

— ryan h. walsh, BostonGlobe.com, "Boston’s most radical TV show blew the minds of a stoned generation in 1967," 1 Mar. 2018
The ranges for each voice type are truncated, much shorter.

— zoë madonna, BostonGlobe.com, "In ‘Threepenny Opera,’ soprano Kelly Kaduce takes the cake," 14 Mar. 2018

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

First Known Use of truncate

circa 1717

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

truncate Synonyms

Other Botany Terms

annual, burgeon, chloroplast, nomenclature, succulent, sylvan, xylem

truncate

adjective

Definition of truncate

: having the end square or even

truncate leaves

See truncate defined for kids

The Connection Between truncate and Trees

Truncate descends from the Latin verb truncare, meaning "to shorten," which in turn can be traced back to the Latin word for the trunk of a tree, which is truncus. Incidentally, if you've guessed that truncus is also the ancestor of the English word trunk, you are correct. Truncus also gave us truncheon, which is the name for a police officer's billy club, and the obscure word obtruncate, meaning "to cut the head or top from."