/ rɪˈdʌkʃn; NAmE / noun
1.
[ C , U ] reduction (in sth) an act of making sth less or smaller; the state of being made less or smaller :
a 33% reduction in the number of hospital beds available
There has been some reduction in unemployment.
a slight / significant / substantial / drastic reduction in costs
2.
[ C ] an amount of money by which sth is made cheaper :
There are reductions for children sharing a room with two adults.
3.
[ C ] a copy of a photograph, map, picture, etc. that is made smaller than the original one
OPP enlargement
4.
( chemistry ) the fact of adding one or more electrons to a substance or of removing oxygen from a substance
—compare oxidation
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English (denoting the action of bringing back): from Old French , or from Latin reductio(n-) , from reducere bring back, restore, from re- back, again + ducere bring, lead. The sense development was broadly similar to that of reduce ; senses 1 and 2 date from the late 17th cent.