# shorten

/ˈʃɔɹtən/ (US) · /ʃˈɔːtən/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/shorten
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. to reduce length or time

verb · CEFR B1

to make something shorter or to take less time.

For teachers: to reduce the physical length or the temporal duration of something. Transitive use.

- The editor asked the writer to shorten the article by two hundred words.
- The committee decided to shorten the conference schedule to ensure that international delegates could catch their return flights.

### 2. to become shorter

verb · CEFR B1

to become shorter in length or time.

For teachers: to become shorter or to decrease in length. Intransitive use.

- The days begin to shorten as winter approaches.
- As the project deadline loomed, the time available for thorough quality assurance testing began to shorten significantly.

### 3. nautical/sails

verb · CEFR C2 · Technical

to take in or reduce the amount of sail on a boat.

For teachers: to reduce the amount of sail spread by taking it in or reefing it. Often used in the phrase 'shorten sail'.

- The captain ordered the crew to shorten sail as the storm got worse.
- Recognizing the signs of an impending gale, the skipper commanded the deckhands to shorten sail before the gusts could damage the rigging.

### 4. cooking/pastry

verb · CEFR C2 · Technical

to add fat to flour to make a pastry crumbly and soft.

For teachers: to make pastry or bread friable or crumbly by adding fat such as butter or lard.

- You need to add enough butter to shorten the dough for a perfect crust.
- The baker explained that using chilled lard helps to shorten the crust, resulting in the desired flaky texture for the savory pie.

## Examples

- I need to shorten these trousers because they are too long.
- The editor asked the writer to shorten the article so it would fit on a single page.
- As winter approaches, the days begin to shorten significantly, leaving commuters to travel home in total darkness by late afternoon.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.