Background for contractions

contractions

/kənˈtrækʃənz/ /kɒnˈtrækʃənz/

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noun

A reversible reduction in size.

Examples :

"During the cold weather, the metal bridge experienced noticeable contractions in its length. "

physiology medicine body

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noun

A period of economic decline or negative growth.

Examples :

"The company announced layoffs due to recent economic contractions. "

economy business

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noun

A shortening of a muscle when it is used.

Examples :

"The athlete's leg muscles experienced rapid contractions during the sprint. "

physiology body medicine anatomy

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noun

A strong and often painful shortening of the uterine muscles prior to or during childbirth.

Examples :

"Maria started timing her contractions when she felt a tightening in her belly. "

medicine physiology body human

Illustration contractions - Image 1

noun

A process whereby one or more sounds of a free morpheme (a word) are lost or reduced, such that it becomes a bound morpheme (a clitic) that attaches phonologically to an adjacent word.

Examples :

"English contractions like "can't" and "won't" are common in everyday speech. "

language linguistics grammar phonetics word

Illustration contractions - Image 1

noun

(English orthography) A word with omitted letters replaced by an apostrophe, usually resulting from the above process.

Examples :

"The teacher asked us to write down five common contractions, like "can't" and "won't." "

grammar language writing word linguistics

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noun

A shorthand symbol indicating an omission for the purpose of brevity.

Examples :

"Teachers often mark down student essays that use too many contractions like "can't" and "won't." "

grammar linguistics word

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noun

The process of contracting a disease.

Examples :

"the contraction of malaria"

disease medicine

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noun

Syncope, the loss of sounds from within a word.

Examples :

"The teacher explained that "isn't" and "won't" are common examples of contractions, where sounds are omitted to shorten the word. "

grammar linguistics phonetics word

Illustration contractions - Image 1

noun

The acquisition of something, generally negative.

Examples :

"Our contraction of debt in this quarter has reduced our ability to attract investors."

negative business economy

Illustration contractions - Image 1

noun

A distinct stage of wound healing, wherein the wound edges are gradually pulled together.

Examples :

"The doctor explained that the visible contractions of the skin around my cut were a sign that it was healing well. "

medicine physiology anatomy body process