retrench

retrench is defined in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1913) with 4 senses. The full text of each entry is reproduced verbatim below.

Definitions

  1. 1.To lessen; to abridge; to curtail; as, to retrench superfluities or expenses. But this thy glory shall be soon retrenched. Milton.
  2. 2.To confine; to limit; to restrict. Addison. These figures, ought they then to receive a retrenched interpretation I. Taylor.
  3. 3.(Fort.) To furnish with a retrenchment; as, to retrench bastions.
  4. 4.To cause or suffer retrenchment; specifically, to cut down living expenses; as, it is more reputable to retrench than to live embarrassed.

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

Synonyms

Synonyms (Webster's 1913)

Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).

Related questions

Reverse-dictionary questions

Definition-first questions whose answer is retrench.

Sources