CONTRACTION


Meaning of CONTRACTION in English

kən.ˈtrakshən noun

( -s )

Etymology: Latin contraction-, contractio, from contractus (past participle of contrahere to draw together) + -ion-, -io -ion — more at contract

1.

[ contract (III) (enter into) + -ion ]

: the making of a contract, agreement, or covenant

the contraction of peace and friendship

contraction of marriage

2.

a. : the action or process of becoming smaller, shorter, or pressed together

the contraction of a gas on cooling

: decrease of size or scope

the contraction at the end of a discharge nozzle

: the quality or state of being contracted : narrowness

complaining of monotony and the contraction of his life

b.

(1) : the shortening and thickening of a muscle or muscle fiber

(2) : a percussive tightening of the muscles usually beginning in the pelvic region, affecting the whole body, and followed by release, the series constituting one of the basic movements of the modern dance

c. : a reduction in the volume of credit outstanding

d. : a reduction in business activity

3. : the act of acquiring or incurring (as a debt) or catching (as an infection)

4.

a.

(1) : a shortening of a word, syllable, or word group by omission of one or more sounds or letters or by the reduction of two or more vowels or syllables to one — used especially of shortening in the interior of a word (as e'er for ever ) and of shortening of enclitics (as 'll for will in they'll ) and proclitics (as 't for it in 't is ); compare syncope 2a

(2) : a form produced by such a shortening

b.

(1) : representation of a word or part of a word by a nonalphabetic shorthand symbol (as the Latin genitive plural ending -orum by 4 or the m in Latin cum by a mark over the preceding letters, cū ) — compare suspension

(2) : a shorthand sign made up of two or more strokes and representing a word

(3) : a conventional abbreviation ; especially : one that uses the initial and final letters of a word, sometimes with one or more medial letters (as Dr. for Doctor or, in Late Latin manuscripts, ds for deus, dns for dominus )

(4) : a braille sign representing a word of several letters (as and ) or part of a word (as com ) by means of a 1-cell or 2-cell character or representing a word by means of its chief consonants (as rcv for receive )

c. classical prosody : the substitution of one long syllable for two short ones — contrasted with resolution

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.