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1. Dictionary

   reduce

   /rɪˈdjuːs/

   verb

   • 1. make smaller or less in amount, degree, or size: "the need for businesses to reduce costs" Similar lessenmake lessmake smallerlowerbring downdecreaseturn downdiminishtake the edge offminimizeshrinknarrowcontractshortenforeshortentruncatetapercloseabbreviatecondenseconcentrateabridgedepleteaxecutcut back/downmake cutbacks inscale downtrimslim (down)prunechopcurtaillimitmoderatelighteneasedilutemitigatecommutequalifyalleviaterelaxabateamortizemake cheaperlower the price oflower/cut in pricecheapencutmark downdiscountput on saleoffer at a giveaway priceinformal:slashknock downOpposite increaseenlargeput up
   • ▪ become smaller or less in size, amount, or degree: "the number of priority homeless cases has reduced slightly"
   • ▪ boil (a sauce or other liquid) in cooking so that it becomes thicker and more concentrated: "increase the heat and reduce the liquid"
   • ▪ (of a person) lose weight, typically by dieting: North American "by May she had reduced to 9 stone"
   • ▪ make (a negative or print) less dense.
   • ▪ articulate (a speech sound) in a way requiring less muscular effort, giving rise in vowels to a more central articulatory position.
   • 2. bring someone or something to (a worse or less desirable state or condition): "she has been reduced to near poverty" Similar bring tobring to the point offorce intodrive into
   • ▪ be forced by difficult circumstances into doing something desperate: "ordinary soldiers are reduced to begging"
   • ▪ make someone helpless with (shock, anguish, or amusement): "Olga was reduced to stunned silence"
   • ▪ force someone into (obedience or submission): "he reduced his grandees to due obedience" Similar bring tobring to the point offorce intodrive into
   • 3. change a substance to (a different or more basic form): "it is difficult to understand how lava could have been reduced to dust"
   • ▪ present a problem or subject in (a simplified form): "he reduces unimaginable statistics to manageable proportions"
   • ▪ convert a fraction to (the form with the lowest terms).
   • 4. cause to combine chemically with hydrogen: "hydrogen for reducing the carbon dioxide"
   • ▪ undergo or cause to undergo a reaction in which electrons are gained from another substance or molecule: "this compound reduces to potassium chloride"
   • 5. restore (a dislocated part of the body) to its proper position by manipulation or surgery: "Joe's reducing a dislocated thumb"
   • 6. besiege and capture (a town or fortress). archaic

   Word Origin late Middle English: from Latin reducere, from re- ‘back, again’ + ducere ‘bring, lead’. The original sense was ‘bring back’ (hence ‘restore’, now surviving in reduce (sense 5)); this led to ‘bring to a different state’, then ‘bring to a simpler or lower state’ (hence reduce (sense 3)); and finally ‘diminish in size or amount’ (reduce (sense 1), dating from the late 18th century).

   Derivatives

   • 1. reducer noun

   Scrabble Points: 9

   • R

     1

   • E

     1

   • D

     2

   • U

     1

   • C

     3

   • E

     1

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   More definitions, origin and scrabble points

2. dictionary.cambridge.org › dictionary › englishREDUCE | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

   dictionary.cambridge.org › dictionary › english

   • Cached

   to become or to make something become smaller in size, amount, degree, importance, etc.: Do nuclear weapons really reduce the risk of war? The plane reduced speed as it approached the airport. My weight reduces when I stop eating sugar. We bought a TV that was reduced from £500 to £350 in the sales. I reduced the problem to a few simple questions.

3. www.merriam-webster.com › dictionary › reduceReduce Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster

   www.merriam-webster.com › dictionary › reduce

   • Cached

   The meaning of REDUCE is to draw together or cause to converge : consolidate. How to use reduce in a sentence. Synonym Discussion of Reduce.

4. www.dictionary.com › browse › reduceREDUCE Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com

   www.dictionary.com › browse › reduce

   • Cached

   Reduce definition: to bring down to a smaller extent, size, amount, number, etc.. See examples of REDUCE used in a sentence.

5. dictionary.cambridge.org › us › dictionaryREDUCE | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary

   dictionary.cambridge.org › us › dictionary

   • Cached

   REDUCE meaning: 1. to become or to make something become smaller in size, amount, degree, importance, etc.: 2. to…. Learn more.

6. www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com › definition › englishreduce verb - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes...

   www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com › definition › english

   • Cached

   reduce. [transitive, intransitive] to make something less or smaller in size, quantity, price, etc.; to become less or smaller in size, quantity, etc. reduce something Reduce speed now (= on a sign). Giving up smoking reduces the risk of heart disease.

7. www.collinsdictionary.com › dictionary › englishREDUCE definition and meaning | Collins English Dictionary

   www.collinsdictionary.com › dictionary › english

   • Cached

   reduce. (rɪdjuːs , US -duːs ) Word forms: 3rd person singular present tense reduces , present participle reducing , past tense, past participle reduced. 1. verb. If you reduce something, you make it smaller in size or amount, or less in degree. It reduces the risks of heart disease. [VERB noun] Consumption is being reduced by 25 per cent.

8. www.thefreedictionary.com › reduceReduce - definition of reduce by The Free Dictionary

   www.thefreedictionary.com › reduce

   • Cached

   1. ( also intr) to make or become smaller in size, number, extent, degree, intensity, etc. 2. to bring into a certain state, condition, etc: to reduce a forest to ashes; to reduce someone to despair. 3. ( also intr) to make or become slimmer; lose or cause to lose excess weight.