The verb shorten is used a few different ways: you can shorten a dress or a pair of pants, which means that you are reducing physical length, or you can shorten a performance or a travel route, which means you are reducing duration. The synonym curtail means “to cut short": measures to curtail the pandemic. But it’s often used with a meaning closer to “limit,” with the suggestion of deprivation: The court’s decision curtailed Congress’s ability to pass legislation. Early uses of the verb were in reference to the docking, or shortening, of an animal’s tail; such an animal was known as a curtal.

When we describe something as explosive, we usually mean one of two things: that the item under discussion is designed or likely to explode in the literal sense, as in an explosive device, or that that it’s likely to lead to violence or hostility, as in an explosive issue. The synonym volatile emphasizes instability and unpredictability; volatile market conditions fluctuate sharply and regularly, and someone with a volatile disposition is mercurial and flighty. Where volatile overlaps the most with explosive is in discussions of unstable situations, as ones marked by strained relations or elevated tensions, that threaten to break out into open violence: a volatile political situation.

Question is the general, neutral verb to refer to asking someone a question or questions—or is it? While it is perfectly legitimate to say, The nurse practitioner questioned him about his injuries, it could have unwanted overtones that need managing. Asking is neutral, but questioning often implies a series of questions and can convey a badgering or suspicious air. To interrogate someone is to engage in formal, systematic questioning of someone, often with the aim of eliciting information they do not want to provide. The word is most often used in the context of criminal investigations and courtrooms (The suspect was detained and interrogated), so it's the perfect bit of hyperbole to use when you're merely being questioned.