SHRINK

psychiatrist, head-shrinker, shrink

(noun) a physician who specializes in psychiatry

shrink, contract

(verb) become smaller or draw together; “The fabric shrank”; “The balloon shrank”

shrink, reduce

(verb) reduce in size; reduce physically; “Hot water will shrink the sweater”; “Can you shrink this image?”

shrivel, shrivel up, shrink, wither

(verb) wither, as with a loss of moisture; “The fruit dried and shriveled”

flinch, squinch, funk, cringe, shrink, wince, recoil, quail

(verb) draw back, as with fear or pain; “she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Verb

shrink (third-person singular simple present shrinks, present participle shrinking, simple past shrunk or shrank, past participle shrunken or shrunk)

(transitive) To cause to become smaller.

(intransitive) To become smaller; to contract.

(intransitive) To cower or flinch.

(transitive) To draw back; to withdraw.

(intransitive, figuratively) To withdraw or retire, as from danger.

(intransitive) To move back or away, especially because of fear or disgust.

Synonyms

• (avoid an unwanted task): funk, shirk

• (withdraw or retire, as from danger): shrink back, retreat

Antonyms

• (to cause to become smaller): expand, grow, enlarge, stretch

• (become smaller): expand, grow, enlarge, stretch

Noun

shrink (plural shrinks)

Shrinkage; contraction; recoil.

(slang, sometimes, pejorative) A psychiatrist or psychotherapist.

Synonym: head-shrinker

(uncountable, business) Loss of inventory, for example due to shoplifting or not selling items before their expiration date.

Usage notes

• (therapist): The slang sense was originally pejorative, expressing a distrust of practitioners in the field. It is now not as belittling or trivializing.

Source: Wiktionary

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Shrink, v. i. [imp. Shrank or Shrunk p. p. Shrunk or Shrunken (, but the latter is now seldom used except as a participial adjective; p. pr. & vb. n. Shrinking.] Etym: [OE. shrinken, schrinken, AS. scrincan; akin to OD. schrincken, and probably to Sw. skrynka a wrinkle, skrynkla to wrinkle, to rumple, and E. shrimp, n. & v., scrimp. CF. Shrimp.]

1. To wrinkle, bend, or curl; to shrivel; hence, to contract into a less extent or compass; to gather together; to become compacted. And on a broken reed he still did stay His feeble steps, which shrunk when hard thereon he lay. Spenser. I have not found that water, by mixture of ashes, will shrink or draw into less room. Bacon. Against this fire do I shrink up. Shak. And shrink like parchment in consuming fire. Dryden. All the boards did shrink. Coleridge.

2. To withdraw or retire, as from danger; to decline action from fear; to recoil, as in fear, horror, or distress. What happier natures shrink at with affright, The hard inhabitant contends is right. Pope. They assisted us against the Thebans when you shrank from the task. Jowett (Thucyd.)

3. To express fear, horror, or pain by contracting the body, or part of it; to shudder; to quake. [R.] Shak.

Shrink, v. t.

1. To cause to contract or shrink; as, to shrink finnel by imersing it in boiling water.

2. To draw back; to withdraw. [Obs.] The Libyc Hammon shrinks his horn. Milton. To shrink on (Mach.), to fix (one piece or part) firmly around (another) by natural contraction in cooling, as a tire on a wheel, or a hoop upon a cannon, which is made slightly smaller than the part it is to fit, and expanded by heat till it can be slipped into place.

Shrink, n.

Definition: The act shrinking; shrinkage; contraction; also, recoil; withdrawal. Yet almost wish, with sudden shrink, That I had less to praise. Leigh Hunt.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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