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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in abridgement
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shortening
Carolynn Carreño, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2025
In 2019, during Trump's first term, China's Ministry of Education warned students about visa issues in the U.S., with rising rejection rates and shortening of visas.
—Arkansas Online, 30 May 2025
Jamie Carter, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
Gigs takes over that process, as well as customer service and tax calculation automation, Frank says, shortening the setup process to weeks and cutting costs.
—Lucinda Shen, Axios, 12 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Verb
For flakiness, there are still those who swear that shortening makes for the flakiest pie crust, which, more widely known by the brand name Crisco, is a solid fat made from primarily soybean and palm oils.
—Carolynn Carreño, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2025
In 2019, during Trump's first term, China's Ministry of Education warned students about visa issues in the U.S., with rising rejection rates and shortening of visas.
—Arkansas Online, 30 May 2025
Noun
Jupiter is just a week past its annual opposition, which sees it at its brightest and best for 13 months as Earth gets in between it and the sun, shortening the distance.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
Gigs takes over that process, as well as customer service and tax calculation automation, Frank says, shortening the setup process to weeks and cutting costs.
—Lucinda Shen, Axios, 12 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for shortening
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortening
Verb
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These chatbots can resolve common employee queries, automate ticket routing and provide 24/7 assistance, reducing dependency on support staff.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
-
Companies and Customers are Leading As global markets prioritize clean technologies, major corporations are staying the course on their goals for reducing carbon pollution and propelling innovation.—
Mindy Lubber,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The nature of its abbreviation would also be an important element in overall acceptance.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
28 July 2025
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The word started out as an abbreviation, or more precisely, an initialism - where initial letters are pronounced separately (as opposed to an acronym, where the initial letters are pronounced as a word).—
Scott Neuman,
NPR,
23 July 2025
Noun
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This will also necessarily result in curtailment of renewable production under some conditions, lowering the EROI of these renewable sources.—
John Timmer,
Ars Technica,
21 May 2024
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Recent examples of months of inaction and delays are electric scooter regulation, sidewalk vendor curtailment and regulating vacation rentals.—
U T Readers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 July 2025
Verb
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The legislature’s actions curtailing the Ethics Commission have led Chaffee to rethink how her group wrote the initial ballot initiative.—
Jacob Orledge,
ProPublica,
6 Jan. 2025
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The National Institutes of Health agrees that curtailing these foods would be beneficial.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Month-on-month, the economy grew 0.4% in June after a 0.1% contraction in May, failing to shake off the impact of U.S. tariffs and business uncertainty.—
Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
14 Aug. 2025
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High-multiple growth stocks often falter during economic slowdowns, as lower earnings growth leads to sharp contractions in valuation multiples.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Melissa Joan Hart is showing off her impressive beard-trimming skills!—
Gil Macias,
People.com,
6 Jan. 2025
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The couple can be seen having a blast as Hart took the clippers and started trimming Wilkerson's beard in various ways, eventually splitting it into three long strands.—
Gil Macias,
People.com,
6 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Many frequent flyers swear by compression socks as a way to keep blood flowing and reduce swelling during long flights.—
Symiah Dorsey,
Southern Living,
15 Aug. 2025
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People have many opinions on which travel accessories are the best, from compression packing cubes that save luggage space to toiletry bags that can hang on the bathroom door.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The firm sued, calling the order a violation of the Constitution's First Amendment protections against government abridgment of speech and Fifth Amendment guarantee of due process - a requirement for the government to use a fair legal process.—
Mike Scarcella and David Thomas,
USA Today,
3 May 2025
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The court later ruled that Congress’ efforts to impose similar limits with respect to noncitizens being detained at Guantanamo Bay under the Military Commissions Act of 2006 were an unconstitutional abridgment of habeas corpus rights.—
Andrea Seielstad,
The Conversation,
22 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shortening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortening. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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