abreggen

Middle English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Old French abreger, from Latin abbreviō.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /aˈbrɛd͡ʒən/, /aˈbrid͡ʒən/

Verb

abreggen (third-person singular simple present abreggeth, present participle abreggende, abreggynge, first-/third-person singular past indicative and past participle abregged)

  1. To lessen (either quantity or amount).
  2. To shorten or reduce in duration or time.
    • a. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “The Knight's Tale”, in The Canterbury Tales, lines 2999–3000:
      Al mowe they yet tho dayes wel abregge, / Ther nedeth noght noon auctoritee t'allegge
      Though they could potentially make those days shorter, / No authority is needed to assert that […]
  3. To abridge or condense; to make into less words.
  4. To palliate, mitigate, or ameliorate; to make less dire.
  5. To terminate, stop, or block; to cause the end of.
  6. (rare) To restrict one's rights or privileges.
  7. (rare) To lessen in length or distance.
  8. (rare) To change to take less time.
  9. (rare) To release from something.

Conjugation

Conjugation of abreggen (weak in -ed)
infinitive (to) abreggen, abregge
present tense past tense
1st-person singular abregge abregged
2nd-person singular abreggest abreggedest
3rd-person singular abreggeth abregged
subjunctive singular abregge
imperative singular —
plural1 abreggen, abregge abreggeden, abreggede
imperative plural abreggeth, abregge —
participles abreggynge, abreggende abregged, yabregged

1 Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Descendants

  • English: abridge

References

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