abbreviate

Abbreviate — Ab*bre vi*ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Abbreviated}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Abbreviating}.] [L. abbreviatus, p. p. of abbreviare; ad + breviare to shorten, fr. brevis short. See {Abridge}.] 1. To make briefer; to shorten; to abridge; to reduce by… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Abbreviate — Ab*bre vi*ate, a. [L. abbreviatus, p. p.] 1. Abbreviated; abridged; shortened. [R.] The abbreviate form. Earle. [1913 Webster] 2. (Biol.) Having one part relatively shorter than another or than the ordinary type. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

abbreviate — [v1] shorten abridge, abstract, boil down*, clip, compress, condense, contract, cut, cut back, cut down, cut off, cut out, digest, encapsulate, get to the meat*, pare, prune, put in a nutshell*, reduce, summarize, take out, trim; concepts 236,247 …   New thesaurus

Abbreviate — Ab*bre vi*ate, n. An abridgment. [Obs.] Elyot. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

abbreviate — index abridge (shorten), abstract (summarize), commute, condense, constrict (compress), curtail …   Law dictionary

abbreviate — (v.) mid 15c., from L. abbreviatus, pp. of abbreviare to shorten (see ABBREVIATION (Cf. abbreviation)). Also sometimes 15c. abbrevy, from M.Fr. abrevier (14c.), from L. abbreviare. Related: Abbreviated; abbreviating …   Etymology dictionary

abbreviate — *shorten, abridge, curtail Analogous words: reduce, *decrease, lessen: *contract, compress, shrink, condense: attenuate, extenuate (see THIN) Antonyms: elongate, lengthen Contrasted words: *extend, prolong, protract: enlarge, * …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

abbreviate — ► VERB ▪ shorten (a word, phrase, or text). ORIGIN Latin abbreviare, from brevis short …   English terms dictionary

abbreviate — [ə brē′vē āt΄] vt. abbreviated, abbreviating [< LL abbreviatus, pp. of abbreviare < L ad , to + breviare < brevis, BRIEF] 1. to make shorter 2. to shorten (a word or phrase) by leaving out or substituting letters SYN. SHORTEN abbreviator …   English World dictionary

abbreviate — v. (D; tr.) to abbreviate to (Esquire can be abbreviated to Esq.) * * * [ə briːvɪeɪt] (D; tr.) to abbreviate to (Esquire can be abbreviated to Esq.) …   Combinatory dictionary

abbreviate — [[t]əbri͟ːvieɪt[/t]] abbreviates, abbreviating, abbreviated VERB If you abbreviate something, especially a word or a piece of writing, you make it shorter. [V n to n] He persuaded his son to abbreviate his first name to Alec. [Also V n] Syn:… …   English dictionary