Word.ws English Dictionary

Synonyms of shorten

17 similar words · 2 opposite words

Another word for shorten is curtail. Other synonyms of shorten are truncate, compress and abridge. The opposite of shorten is extend.

Synonyms and similar words for shorten

verbMore synonyms

  • abbreviateTo shorten by omitting parts or details.
  • abridgeTo make shorter; to shorten in duration or extent.
  • chop downTo curtail, shorten.
  • chop off
  • cut short
  • compressTo abridge.
  • condense
  • curtTo cut, cut short, shorten.
  • curtailTo shorten or abridge the duration of; to bring an end to; to truncate.
  • lop offTo cut off as the top or extreme part of anything, especially to prune a small limb off a shrub or tree, or sometimes...
  • make shorter
  • pare
  • pruneTo cut down or shorten (by the removal of unnecessary material).
  • reduce in length
  • trim
  • truncateTo shorten (something) by, or as if by, cutting part of it off.
  • saw off

Opposite of shorten

verbMore antonyms

Meaning of shorten

  1. verb To make shorter; to abbreviate.
  2. verb To become shorter.
  3. verb To make deficient (as to); to deprive (of).

Full definition of shorten

shorten in other languages

Questions about synonyms of shorten

What is another word for shorten?
Shorten has 17 synonyms on Word.ws, such as curtail, truncate, compress and abridge.
What is the opposite of shorten?
The opposite of shorten is extend.
What does shorten mean?
Shorten means to make shorter; to abbreviate.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: shorten (page history and authors) and the entries of the words listed. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws grouped the synonyms and antonyms by meaning and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this page: “Synonyms of shorten.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/synonyms/shorten. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.