The difference between Contract and Shorten

When used as verbs, contract means to draw together or nearer, whereas shorten means to make shorter.


Contract is also noun with the meaning: an agreement between two or more parties, to perform a specific job or work order, often temporary or of fixed duration and usually governed by a written agreement.

Contract is also adjective with the meaning: contracted.

check bellow for the other definitions of Contract and Shorten

  1. Contract as a noun:

    An agreement between two or more parties, to perform a specific job or work order, often temporary or of fixed duration and usually governed by a written agreement.

    Examples:

    "Marriage is a contract."

  2. Contract as a noun (legal):

    An agreement which the law will enforce in some way. A legally binding contract must contain at least one promise, i.e., a commitment or offer, by an offeror to and accepted by an offeree to do something in the future. A contract is thus executory rather than executed.

  3. Contract as a noun (legal):

    A part of legal studies dealing with laws and jurisdiction related to contracts.

  4. Contract as a noun (informal):

    An order, usually given to a hired assassin, to kill someone.

    Examples:

    "The mafia boss put a contract out on the man who betrayed him."

  5. Contract as a noun (bridge):

    The declarer's undertaking to win the number of tricks bid with a stated suit as trump.

  1. Contract as an adjective (obsolete):

    Contracted; affianced; betrothed.

    Examples:

    "rfquotek Shakespeare"

  2. Contract as an adjective (obsolete):

    Not abstract; concrete.

  1. Contract as a verb (ambitransitive):

    To draw together or nearer; to shorten, narrow, or lessen.

    Examples:

    "The snail's body contracted into its shell."

    "to contract one's sphere of action"

  2. Contract as a verb (grammar):

    To shorten by omitting a letter or letters or by reducing two or more vowels or syllables to one.

    Examples:

    "The word "cannot" is often contracted into "can't"."

  3. Contract as a verb (transitive):

    To enter into a contract with.

  4. Contract as a verb (transitive):

    To enter into, with mutual obligations; to make a bargain or covenant for.

  5. Contract as a verb (intransitive):

    To make an agreement or contract; to covenant; to agree; to bargain.

    Examples:

    "to contract for carrying the mail"

  6. Contract as a verb (transitive):

    To bring on; to incur; to acquire.

    Examples:

    "She contracted the habit of smoking in her teens."

    "to contract a debt"

  7. Contract as a verb (transitive):

    To gain or acquire (an illness).

  8. Contract as a verb:

    To draw together so as to wrinkle; to knit.

  9. Contract as a verb:

    To betroth; to affiance.

  1. Shorten as a verb (transitive):

    To make shorter; to abbreviate.

  2. Shorten as a verb (intransitive):

    To become shorter.

  3. Shorten as a verb (transitive):

    To make deficient (as to); to deprive (of).

  4. Shorten as a verb (transitive):

    To make short or friable, as pastry, with butter, lard, etc.

  5. Shorten as a verb (transitive):

    To reduce or diminish in amount, quantity, or extent; to lessen.

    Examples:

    "to shorten an allowance of food"

  6. Shorten as a verb (nautical, transitive):

    To take in the slack of (a rope).

  7. Shorten as a verb (nautical, transitive):

    To reduce (sail) by taking it in.