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Meaning of reduce in English
Pronunciation
/rəˈd(j)us/
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Verb
reduce
Etymology
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)
Definitions
1.
cut down on
Examples
« make a reduction in »
« reduce your daily fat intake »
« The employer wants to cut back health benefits »
2.
make less complex
Examples
« reduce a problem to a single question »
3.
bring to humbler or weaker state or condition
Examples
« He reduced the population to slavery »
4.
simplify the form of a mathematical equation of expression by substituting one term for another
5.
lower in grade or rank or force somebody into an undignified situation
Examples
« She reduced her niece to a servant »
6.
be the essential element
Examples
« The proposal boils down to a compromise »
7.
reduce in size
Examples
« reduce physically »
« Hot water will shrink the sweater »
« Can you shrink this image? »
8.
lessen and make more modest
Examples
« reduce one's standard of living »
9.
make smaller
Examples
« reduce an image »
Antonyms
blow up
enlarge
magnify
10.
to remove oxygen from a compound, or cause to react with hydrogen or form a hydride, or to undergo an increase in the number of electrons
Antonyms
oxidize
oxidise
oxidate
oxidize
oxidise
oxidate
11.
narrow or limit
Examples
« reduce the influx of foreigners »
12.
put down by force or intimidation
Examples
« The government quashes any attempt of an uprising »
« China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently »
« The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land »
13.
undergo meiosis
Examples
« The cells reduce »
14.
reposition (a broken bone after surgery) back to its normal site
15.
reduce in scope while retaining essential elements
Examples
« The manuscript must be shortened »
Antonyms
elaborate
lucubrate
expatiate
exposit
enlarge
flesh out
expand
expound
dilate
16.
be cooked until very little liquid is left
Examples
« The sauce should reduce to one cup »
17.
cook until very little liquid is left
Examples
« The cook reduced the sauce by boiling it for a long time »
18.
lessen the strength or flavor of a solution or mixture
Examples
« cut bourbon »
19.
take off weight
Antonyms
gain
put on