Curtail - English meaning

verb

Make an opening, incision, or wound in (something) with a sharp-edged tool or object.

Usage examples:

He cut his toe on a sharp stone

noun

A stroke or blow given by a sharp-edged implement or by a whip or cane.

Usage examples:

He could skin an animal with a single cut of the knife

verb

Separate with or as if with an instrument

verb

Make or become smaller or fewer in size, amount, intensity, or degree.

Usage examples:

The population of the area has decreased radically

noun

An instance or example of becoming smaller or fewer.

Usage examples:

A decrease in births

verb

To become smaller or make something less

Usage examples:

[ i ] car sales decreased sharply this year., i haven’t noticed any decrease in ticket sales.

verb

Make or become less.

Usage examples:

The new law is expected to diminish the government's chances

verb

To reduce or be reduced in size or importance

Usage examples:

[ i ] the threat of inflation is diminishing., [ t ] a single-payer system would diminish the burea…

verb

To reduce or be reduced in size, importance, or value

Usage examples:

If consumers start losing confidence, it will diminish demand for household goods., investors can d…

noun

An enclosed area of water in a port for the loading, unloading, and repair of ships.

Usage examples:

The boat nosed up to a dock

verb

(of a ship) come into a dock and tie up at a wharf.

Usage examples:

The ship docked at southampton

noun

The solid bony or fleshy part of an animal's tail, excluding the hair.

Usage examples:

Jason grabbed the towels and spread them at the dog's tail and dock.

verb

Make or become less; diminish.

Usage examples:

The years have lessened the gap in age between us

verb

To become or make something smaller in amount or degree

Usage examples:

[ t ] keeping your weight down can lessen the risk of heart disease.

verb

To make something smaller, less noticeable, etc., or to become smaller, less noticeable, etc.

Usage examples:

Corporate executives are keen to embrace "green technology" in order to lessen their dependence on …

noun

A point or level beyond which something does not or may not extend or pass.

Usage examples:

The failure showed the limits of british power

verb

Set or serve as a limit to.

Usage examples:

Try to limit the amount you drink

noun

The greatest amount, number, or level allowed or possible

Usage examples:

There’s a limit to her patience., two cups of coffee are my limit., spending limits were imposed by…

verb

Cut off (a branch, limb, or twig) from the main body of a tree.

Usage examples:

They lopped off more branches to save the tree

noun

Branches and twigs lopped off trees.

Usage examples:

In many forests they took the lop and top, and in some cases the stump, of trees

verb

Hang loosely or limply; droop.

Usage examples:

A stomach that lopped over his belt

verb

Move to or place in a particular position.

Usage examples:

I put my hand out towards her

noun

A throw of a shot or weight.

Usage examples:

Nichols recorded a put of 61.05 on his third attempt.

Cause to be in a certain state

verb

Make smaller or less in amount, degree, or size.

Usage examples:

The need for businesses to reduce costs

verb

Make smaller

verb

To make something less in size, amount, degree, importance, or price

Usage examples:

A low-fat diet can reduce the risk of heart disease., grunn employs 17,900 people, but that number …

verb

Put a limit on; keep under control.

Usage examples:

Some roads may have to be closed at peak times to restrict the number of visitors

verb

To limit someone's actions or movement, or to limit the amount, size, etc., of something

Usage examples:

The government has so sharply restricted his fishing that he can barely pay his crew., the state le…

verb

To limit something, reduce its size, or prevent it from increasing

Usage examples:

If they want to restrict access to their pages, privacy controls are available., restrict the sale/…

verb

(of an organization or individual) reduce costs or spending in response to economic difficulty.

Usage examples:

As a result of the recession the company retrenched

verb

If governments, companies, etc. retrench, they start spending less money, or reducing costs

Usage examples:

Some large corporate r&d departments have retrenched., it's time to retrench and refocus on our key…

verb

Make or become shorter.

Usage examples:

He shortened his stride

verb

Make short or shorter

verb

To make something shorter in length, distance, or height

Usage examples:

I’d like to have this jacket shortened by about two inches., a high school knee injury probably sho…

verb

Become or make smaller in size or amount.

Usage examples:

The workforce shrank to a thousand

noun

A psychiatrist.

Usage examples:

You should see a shrink

verb

To become smaller or cause something to become smaller

Usage examples:

[ i ] the show’s audience has shrunk in the last few months., [ t ] i shrank my sweater by putting …

verb

Make (something) neat or of the required size or form by cutting away irregular or unwanted parts.

Usage examples:

Trim the grass using a sharp mower

noun

Additional decoration, typically along the edges of something and in contrasting colour or material.

Usage examples:

A red blazer with gold trim

adjective

Neat and smart in appearance; in good order.

Usage examples:

His face was freshly shaved, his clothes neat and trim

verb

Shorten the duration or extent of.

Usage examples:

He was a sensational player whose career was truncated by injuries

adjective

(of a leaf, feather, or other part) ending abruptly as if cut off across the base or tip.

Usage examples:

The ends are usually acute or obtuse, but sometimes also fish tail-like, truncate or vague.

verb

To make something shorter or quicker, especially by removing the end of it

Usage examples:

Television coverage of the event was truncated by a technical fault.