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.
ABRIDGER
A*bridg"er, n.
Defn: One who abridges.
ABRIDGMENT
A*bridg"ment, n. Etym: [OE. abregement. See Abridge.]
1. The act abridging, or the state of being abridged; diminution; lessening; reduction or deprivation; as, an abridgment of pleasures or of expenses.
2. An epitome or compend, as of a book; a shortened or abridged form; an abbreviation. Ancient coins as abridgments of history. Addison.
3. That which abridges or cuts short; hence, an entertainment that makes the time pass quickly. [Obs.] What abridgment have you for this evening What mask What music Shak.
Syn. — Abridgment, Compendium, Epitome, Abstract, Synopsis. An abridgment is made by omitting the less important parts of some larger work; as, an abridgment of a dictionary. A compendium is a brief exhibition of a subject, or science, for common use; as, a compendium of American literature. An epitome corresponds to a compendium, and gives briefly the most material points of a subject; as, an epitome of history. An abstract is a brief statement of a thing in its main points. A synopsis is a bird's-eye view of a subject, or work, in its several parts.