as in reducing
to make less in extent or duration
we decided to shorten the distance we had to walk home by cutting across the neighbor's lawn if Grandma has to go shopping today, you'll need to shorten your visit
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in abridgement
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shortening
Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Oct. 2025
Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly.
—Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 22 Sep. 2025
Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 29 Sep. 2025
For adult projects, Alloy works with the writer to develop a full manuscript, and Morgenstein finds this step a way of shortening the process.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Verb
Sometime early in the 21st century, Mom switched from vegetable shortening to butter.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Oct. 2025
Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly.
—Sheri Castle, Southern Living, 22 Sep. 2025
Noun
The company’s ethos is centered on significantly shortening the drug discovery and development process, ultimately creating medicines to treat the most significant killers, starting with aggressive cancers like breast cancer, prostate cancer, and lymphoma.
—Alexa Mikhail, Flow Space, 29 Sep. 2025
For adult projects, Alloy works with the writer to develop a full manuscript, and Morgenstein finds this step a way of shortening the process.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortening
Verb
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Solutions like breathable film packaging and smart logistics play a crucial role in reducing waste and prolonging shelf life.—
William Jones,
Freep.com,
27 Oct. 2025
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Adopting a healthy lifestyle, including diet, exercise, sleep, maintaining a healthy weight, avoiding sugar, eliminating tobacco, and curbing or skipping alcoholic beverages altogether, play a role in reducing early breast cancer recurrence.—
Marnie Goodfriend,
Flow Space,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Edo also followed Prince William and Kate Middleton's lead with the sweet sign off for his latest social post by abbreviating the children's first names with their initials to send an online message.—
Janine Henni,
People.com,
9 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The first two abbreviations are easy enough to understand.—
Mark Phelan,
USA Today,
27 Sep. 2025
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Joshua Jahn wrote using an abbreviation for armor-piercing, according to the FBI.—
Emerson Clarridge,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
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What’s left of it was led, at least for a while, by a 29-year-old White House appointee who helped craft Project 2025, the right-wing blueprint that broadly calls for the curtailment of civil rights enforcement.—
J. David McSwane,
ProPublica,
18 Oct. 2025
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In past shutdowns, that has led to the closures of hundreds of national parks and museums, the curtailment of veterans' services, the suspension of health inspections, the postponement of immigration hearings and a slew of other impacts.—
Kevin Breuninger,
CNBC,
26 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Spotify also cut 15 jobs in its podcast division, curtailing the headcount at The Ringer and Spotify Studios by about 5%.—
Gene Maddaus,
Variety,
23 Oct. 2025
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The shortage has also been made worse by an infestation of New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite, just across the border in Mexico, significantly curtailing beef imports from that country.—
Samantha Delouya,
CNN Money,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The effort has also faced criticism over transparency after reports revealed that more than 2,000 people involved were required to sign nondisclosure agreements, limiting public access to spending and contracting details.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
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Cattle farmers are well-equipped to deal with dwindling flock sizes, which are a part of about a decade-long cycle of a natural swelling and contracting of livestock populations as result of cattles’ biological life cycle, Peel said.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The closing of textile mills, the loss of manufacturing jobs — particularly from an Oshkosh B’Gosh factory in nearby Clay County that moved to Mexico in the mid-Nineties — induced a steady contraction of the local economy.—
David Peisner,
Rolling Stone,
23 Oct. 2025
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Graham, whose small portfolio is known for punching above its weight, has persevered through previous rounds of contraction.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Compressing multiyear pre-construction cycles into days or weeks and trimming 20% off project costs could expand supply faster than most policy interventions.—
Jon Stojan,
USA Today,
21 Oct. 2025
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After cutting and trimming any splinters, place the stakes behind the trellis.—
Elizabeth Fogarty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shortening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortening. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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