shorten
- 01 B1 Intermediate
to make something shorter or to take less time.
to reduce the physical length or the temporal duration of something. Transitive use.
Simple“The editor asked the writer to shorten the article by two hundred words.”
In context“The committee decided to shorten the conference schedule to ensure that international delegates could catch their return flights.”
Synonyms - 02 B1 Intermediate
to become shorter in length or time.
to become shorter or to decrease in length. Intransitive use.
Simple“The days begin to shorten as winter approaches.”
In context“As the project deadline loomed, the time available for thorough quality assurance testing began to shorten significantly.”
- 03 C2 Proficiency
to take in or reduce the amount of sail on a boat.
to reduce the amount of sail spread by taking it in or reefing it. Often used in the phrase 'shorten sail'.
Simple“The captain ordered the crew to shorten sail as the storm got worse.”
In context“Recognizing the signs of an impending gale, the skipper commanded the deckhands to shorten sail before the gusts could damage the rigging.”
Synonymsreeffurl - 04 C2 Proficiency
to add fat to flour to make a pastry crumbly and soft.
to make pastry or bread friable or crumbly by adding fat such as butter or lard.
Simple“You need to add enough butter to shorten the dough for a perfect crust.”
In context“The baker explained that using chilled lard helps to shorten the crust, resulting in the desired flaky texture for the savory pie.”
From Middle English shortnen, schortenen, equivalent to short + -en (verbal suffix). In some senses, a continuation (in altered form) of Middle English schorten (“to make short, shorten”), from Old English sċortian (“to become short”), from Proto-Germanic *skurtōną (“to shorten”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.