CONTRACTING Synonyms: 131 Similar and Opposite Words

contracting 1 of 2

noun

as in squeezing

the act or process of reducing the size or volume of something by or as if by pressing the contracting of the time frame for the primaries tends to favor candidates who are already well-known

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contracting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of contract

as in getting

to become affected with (a disease or disorder) before vaccines were invented, people lived in fear of contracting polio

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as in shrinking

to become smaller in size or volume through the drawing together of particles of matter metal contracts at low temperatures

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as in compressing

to reduce in size or volume by or as if by pressing parts or members together contract the calf muscles in your legs

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as in bargaining

to come to an arrangement as to a course of action the farmer contracted for delivery of the hay by the first of July

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of contracting

Noun

These scaly reptiles move by alternating contracting muscles on either side of their body. — Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 29 Oct. 2026 Marlin Stoltzfus is a contractor and the owner of MKS Construction LLC and has over 20 years of experience in roofing, general contracting, remodeling, and new home construction. — Timothy Dale, The Spruce, 28 Oct. 2026 One woman, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation from the nursing home, claimed her mother ended up contracting sepsis and nearly died because staff neglected to oversee her needs. — Livi Stanford, Hartford Courant, 27 Oct. 2026 Collectively, their companies have been awarded up to $1 billion for state contracting work in recent years, according to the Miami Herald. — Kate Payne, Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2026 Technical specifications, cybersecurity protections, contracting arrangements and conversion procedures would be worked out in advance. — Bilin Lin, Fortune, 26 Oct. 2026 Staff morale is low amid the drip-drip of redundancy announcements, which follows the BBC’s workforce contracting by 10% since 2020. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 24 Oct. 2026 The lawmakers’ staff would also backchannel with the Navy after the bill was passed to make sure contracting offices knew to direct the money to Navatek, emails seen by ProPublica show — even though the contracts were in theory competitive. — Molly Redden, ProPublica, 20 Oct. 2026 By mapping these thousands of different features, all created from the moon cooling and contracting over time, the researchers are piecing together lunar history. — Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 19 Oct. 2026

Verb

After contracting the plague, he was banished to a cave, where a dog brought him bread and healed his wounds by licking them. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2026 At a time when the supply of commercial rockets is contracting, demand for satellite launch is soaring, from megaconstellation operators such as Amazon to a flurry of small satellite startups. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 30 Oct. 2026 Plus, Anthropic signed on to spend $30 billion on Azure and contracting as much as a gigawatt worth of additional computing power. — Ashley Capoot,jordan Novet,annie Palmer,lora Kolodny,kai Nicol-Schwarz,caleigh Keating, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2026 More recently, a ProPublica investigation revealed that the FBI had scrutinized dealings between Collins, her associates, and a major donor who ran a defense-contracting firm. — Emma Specter, Vogue, 26 Oct. 2026 Rotate your torso to one side, leading with your shoulders and contracting your obliques. — Sarah Stiefvater, Flow Space, 23 Oct. 2026 Nelson authored Assembly Bill 2019, carried by Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, which established a state goal of awarding at least 25% of procurement and contracting opportunities to small businesses and microbusinesses. — Nicole Buss october 8, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026 At least 50 health workers have died after contracting the virus. — ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026 Many services offer these platforms individually, although contracting them separately means reconciling three contracts and three data models. — Guy Kurlandski, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for contracting

Noun

So scientists use frequency-dependent squeezing to reduce quantum noise.

— Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 22 May 2026
Maenpaa added that the physical act of squeezing creates a sensory anchor.

— Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 7 May 2026

Definition of squeezing

Verb

Now, Tan-Gillespie is tasked with getting KFC’s American business back on track as the brand faces growing competition paired with more health-conscious and cash-strapped consumers.

— Preston Fore, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Before Rover, success meant getting promotions, landing bigger clients and climbing the corporate ladder.

— Sally Simmons, Contributor, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of getting

Verb

Neither candidate reached the majority needed to win outright, forcing both campaigns to compete for a shrinking pool of undecided voters while trying to mobilize their supporters in a country deeply divided over its political future.

— Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2026
Demographic data expose disparities that raw numbers can obscure and show whether those gaps are growing or shrinking.

— Julie Morita, Time, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of shrinking

Verb

Laser fusion follows another route, compressing and heating a tiny fuel pellet so reactions occur before the fuel disperses.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
Glaciers could re-form if carbon pollution declines substantially and temperatures drop enough to enable snowfall to build year-round, eventually compressing again into glacial ice, but that may take several hundred years, Menounos added.

— ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of compressing

Verb

Equity and Casa Bonita management have been bargaining since April 2025, with the union meeting with management at least once a month, Hoeschen said.

— Jessica Alvarado Gamez, Denver Post, 6 Oct. 2026
Yet one or more of the P5 could inject new names at the last minute, once again leaving the decision to behind-the-scenes bargaining among a few powerful states.

— Ian Johnstone, The Conversation, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of bargaining

Noun

Located inside The Mark, the space will offer a menu of holistic treatments, connecting the mind and body through state of the art facials, red light therapy, medical-grade compression boots and more.

— Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 24 Oct. 2026
That compression is what makes the phase three moment tradable inside every current fund horizon.

— Stephen Messer, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of compression

Verb

Peltola is a gun-owning, fish-catching Alaska-bush native, who has worked for mines and supports oil drilling, and is allied with the state’s largest labor unions.

— Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
But for audiences outside North America, catching Nathan Fielder’s three-hour documentary about disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes — now expected to be a major player in awards season — has become a frustrating waiting game.

— Alex Ritman, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of catching

Verb

School library jobs remain vulnerable to budget cuts, and the number of school librarians across the state has been decreasing since 2010.

— Kafi Kumasi, The Conversation, 27 Oct. 2026
Huang said this week that CoreWeave doesn't need Nvidia's backstop and that the neocloud's cost of capital is decreasing.

— Kif Leswing,Isabel O'Brien, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026