[abridge] vt abridged ; abridg.ing [ME abregen, fr. MF abregier, fr. LL abbreviare, fr. L ad- + brevis short--more at brief] (14c) 1 a archaic: deprive b: to reduce in scope: diminish "attempts to ~ the right of free speech"
2: to shorten in duration or extent "modern transportation that ~s distance"
3: to shorten by omission of words without sacrifice of sense: condense syn see shorten -- abridg.er n