Antonyms for contraction
| Grammar : Noun |
| Spell : kuh n-trak-shuh n |
| Phonetic Transcription : kənˈtræk ʃən |
Definition of contraction
Origin :- late 14c., "action of making a contract" (especially of marriage), also "action of shrinking or shortening," from Old French contraction (13c.), or directly from Latin contractionem (nominative contractio), noun of action from past participle stem of contrahere (see contract (n.)). Meaning "action of acquiring (a disease) is from c.1600. Grammatical sense is from 1706; meaning "a contracted word or words" is from 1755. Contractions of the uterus in labor of childbirth attested from 1962.
- noun drawing in; shortening
- A kind of universal cramp seized me—a contraction of every fibre of my body.
- Extract from : « Wilfrid Cumbermede » by George MacDonald
- If the lameness arise from contraction, rather than from weakness, the best means will be frequent rubbing of the part affected.
- Extract from : « The Cook and Housekeeper's Complete and Universal Dictionary; Including a System of Modern Cookery, in all Its Various Branches, » by Mary Eaton
- White is produced by the dilation, black by the contraction, of the particles of sight.
- Extract from : « Timaeus » by Plato
- As the glue dries and breaks by contraction, it chips off the surface of the glass.
- Extract from : « On Laboratory Arts » by Richard Threlfall
- Every muscle in his body responded with a contraction of full intensity.
- Extract from : « The K-Factor » by Harry Harrison (AKA Henry Maxwell Dempsey)
- I was waiting to look it up, having some idea that it held a contraction.
- Extract from : « Brother Copas » by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
- More accurately, the bark is a contraction of the tissue of the leaf.
- Extract from : « Proserpina, Volume 1 » by John Ruskin
- There was a contraction around his breast-bone and a shiver in his shoulders.
- Extract from : « The Best Short Stories of 1915 » by Various
- The contraction in the volume of the air is equal to the volume of oxygen absorbed.
- Extract from : « An Elementary Study of Chemistry » by William McPherson
- With a contraction of heart he plunged himself into the conversation.
- Extract from : « Robert Elsmere » by Mrs. Humphry Ward
Synonyms for contraction
- abbreviating
- abbreviation
- abridging
- abridgment
- compression
- condensation
- condensing
- confinement
- confining
- constriction
- curtailing
- curtailment
- cutting down
- decrease
- decreasing
- deflating
- deflation
- diminishing
- diminution
- drawing together
- dwindling
- elision
- evaporating
- evaporation
- lessening
- lopping
- narrowing
- omission
- omitting
- receding
- recession
- reducing
- reduction
- shrinkage
- shrinking
- shrivelling
- tensing
- tightening
- withdrawal
- withdrawing
Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019