shortens

VERB

diminish, decrease

Synonyms

STRONGEST

abbreviate compress curtail cut cut back cut down lessen minimize reduce shrink slash trim

STRONG

abridge bob chop clip condense contract dock edit elide excerpt lop retrench snip

WEAK

blue pencil boil down cut to the bone make a long story short put in a nutshell

Antonyms

STRONGEST

develop enlarge expand extend grow increase lengthen raise strengthen stretch

WEAK

amplify elongate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

shortens

The results therefore do not show that taking a tyrosine supplement shortens lifespan.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026

That window shortens to one hour if air conditioning fails during summer heat.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

That means they will be hoping to come to an agreement with Red Bull that shortens that timeframe.

From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2026

Houston thrives when it shortens the field and avoids asking the offense to sustain long drives.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 26, 2025

“The king shortens no man’s shadow, though he may try,” Estraven remarked, and the cook looked satisfied.

From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin

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