Synonyms for contract
- verb
- noun
Synonyms by meaning
Verb
1. Shorten — to draw together or nearer; to shorten, narrow, or lessen
shorten, reduce, shrink, abbreviate, decrease, diminish, cut, abridge, lessen, retrench, scrimp, clip, abate, shrivel, epitomize UK US, epitomise UK, attenuate, foreshorten rare
2. Acquire — to gain or acquire (an illness)
get, acquire, catch, incur, come down with, procure, take, take in, draw, gather
4. Condense
Noun
1. Pact — an agreement between two or more parties, to perform a specific job or work order, often temporary or of…
agreement, pact, deal, bargain, stipulation, compact, obligation, covenant, arrangement, bond, protocol, convention, engagement, treaty dated
Other
service agreement, deed, sign-up, declaration, sign-on, cartel
Definitions
- v. 1
To draw together or nearer; to shorten, narrow, or lessen.
to contract one’s sphere of action
- v. 2
To gain or acquire (an illness).
- v. 3
To shorten by omitting a letter or letters or by reducing two or more vowels or syllables to one.
The word “cannot” is often contracted into “can’t”.
- n. 1
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.
Related words
Forms
- Plural
- contracts → agreements, pacts, deals, bargains…
- Past participle
- contracted
e.g. contracted → shortened, reduced, abbreviated, decreased…
Choose the right word
A contract is a formal agreement between two or more parties for the doing or leaving undone some specified act or acts, and is ordinarily in writing. Mutual promises may have the force of a contract.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- abate The storm didn't abate for several hours.
- press Press the red button if something strange happens.
- sign He was made to sign the contract against his will.
- stipulate Why wouldn't you stipulate that in the contract?
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| contract | falling | |
| abate | falling | |
| press | steady | |
| sign | rising | |
| stipulate | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- get1, cut1
- 4 letters
- take1, deal1, sign1, draw1, shut1, bond1, clip1, deed1, pact1
- 5 letters
- press1, agree2, catch1, incur2, abate2
- 6 letters
- reduce2, narrow2, treaty2, gather2, pledge1, shrink1, cartel2, lessen2, scrimp1
- 7 letters
- acquire3, compact2, bargain2, squeeze1, shorten2, procure2, confine2, shrivel2, abridge2
- 8 letters
- decrease2, collapse2, protocol3, covenant3, diminish3, compress2, condense2, retrench2, straiten
- 9 letters
- agreement3, undertake3, stipulate3, attenuate4, constrict2, epitomize4, epitomise
- 10 letters
- convention3, engagement3, obligation4, abbreviate4
- 11 letters
- arrangement3, concentrate3, declaration4, stipulation4, foreshorten
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (agree2 = 2 syllables).
In other languages
- Français
- contracter
- Italiano
- contrattare