abridge
(verb) lessen, diminish, or curtail; “the new law might abridge our freedom of expression”
abridge, foreshorten, abbreviate, shorten, cut, contract, reduce
(verb) reduce in scope while retaining essential elements; “The manuscript must be shortened”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
abridge (third-person singular simple present abridges, present participle abridging, simple past and past participle abridged)
(transitive, archaic) To deprive; to cut off. [First attested from around (1150 to 1350)]
(transitive, archaic, rare) To debar from. [First attested from around (1150 to 1350)]
(transitive) To make shorter; to shorten in duration or extent. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470)]
(transitive) To shorten or contract by using fewer words, yet retaining the sense; to epitomize; to condense[First attested in 1384.]. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470)]
(transitive) Cut short; truncate. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470)]
(transitive) To curtail. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470)]
• (deprive): Usually used with to or sometimes with from as, to abridge one of his rights.
• bigrade, brigade
Abridge
A village in Essex, England
• bigrade, brigade
Source: Wiktionary
A*bridge", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Abridged; p. pr. & vb. n. Abridging.] Etym: [OE. abregen, OF. abregier, F. abréger, fr. L. abbreviare; ad + brevis short. See Brief and cf. Abbreviate.]
1. To make shorter; to shorten in duration; to lessen; to diminish; to curtail; as, to abridge labor; to abridge power or rights. "The bridegroom . . . abridged his visit." Smollett. She retired herself to Sebaste, and abridged her train from state to necessity. Fuller.
2. To shorten or contract by using fewer words, yet retaining the sense; to epitomize; to condense; as, to abridge a history or dictionary.
3. To deprive; to cut off; -- followed by of, and formerly by from; as, to abridge one of his rights.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
7 May 2025
(noun) a person who is employed to deliver messages or documents; “he sent a runner over with the contract”
The first coffee-house in Mecca dates back to the 1510s. The beverage was in Turkey by the 1530s. It appeared in Europe circa 1515-1519 and was introduced to England by 1650. By 1675 the country had more than 3,000 coffee houses, and coffee had replaced beer as a breakfast drink.
