# reduce

Pronunciation: US say "ri-DOOS" /ɹɪˈd(j)us/; UK say "ri-JOOS" /ɹɪˈd͡ʒuːs/

## Verb

1. To bring down the size, quantity, quality, value, or intensity of something.
   - Simple: To make something smaller, less, or weaker.
   - _The new policy aims to reduce traffic in the city center._
   - _Cutting back on sugar reduced her risk of diabetes._
2. To turn something into a simpler or more elementary form, or to treat it as amounting to no more than a single thing, typically followed by "to".
   - Simple: To change something into a simpler form, or to treat it as if it were only one thing, usually followed by "to".
   - _It is a mistake to reduce every political argument to a question of money._
   - _Critics accused the film of reducing a complicated war to a simple tale of heroes and villains._
3. To thicken a sauce or liquid by boiling off much of its water content.
   - Simple: To boil a sauce or liquid so some water cooks away and it gets thicker.
   - _Reduce the stock by half before adding the cream._
   - _The chef reduced the broth to intensify its flavor._
4. To cause a substance to gain electrons or hydrogen, or to lose oxygen, in a chemical reaction.
   - Simple: To make a chemical gain electrons or lose oxygen during a reaction.
   - _Strong agents like lithium aluminum hydride reduce ketones to alcohols._
   - _In photosynthesis, plants use energy from sunlight to reduce carbon dioxide to sugars._
5. To bring someone or something to a worse or lower state or condition, or to force someone into something they find humbling or unworthy.
   - Simple: To make someone or something end up in a much worse state, such as ruins, tears, or begging.
   - _The bombing reduced the old city to rubble._
   - _Such losses can reduce even a strong leader to despair._
7. To simplify an equation, fraction, or formula into a simpler form without changing its value.
   - Simple: To make an equation or fraction simpler while keeping its value the same.
   - _Always reduce a fraction before comparing it with another._
   - _The student reduced the expression to a single term._
8. To bring someone down to an inferior rank or position; to demote or degrade.
   - Simple: To move someone down to a lower rank or position.
   - _The court-martial reduced the sergeant to private._
   - _Management threatened to reduce him to a clerical role._
9. To conquer, subdue, or capture an enemy, stronghold, or territory; to bring it under control by force.
   - Simple: To defeat and gain control over an enemy, city, or fortress.
   - _Roman legions reduced the city after months of blockade._
   - _The general intended to reduce every fortified town along the coast._
10. To restore a broken or dislocated bone to its proper alignment, often by careful manipulation.
   - Simple: To put a broken or dislocated bone back into its correct place.
   - _Surgeons reduce the fracture and then secure it with a metal plate._
   - _The paramedic reduced the dislocated finger before splinting it._
11. To pronounce a sound or word with less effort, typically weakening or shortening it in speech.
   - Simple: To say a sound or word with less effort, so it becomes weaker or shorter.
   - _English speakers reduce the second vowel of "chocolate" until it nearly disappears._
   - _In relaxed speech, English speakers often reduce the vowels of unstressed words, so 'for' in 'wait for me' sounds more like 'fer.'_
12. To extract metal from ore by removing nonmetallic elements, typically through smelting.
   - Simple: To get metal out of ore, the rock it is found in, usually by heating it to remove other elements.
   - _Blast furnaces reduce iron ore using coke as the main fuel._
   - _Ancient peoples reduced copper ore in simple clay furnaces._
13. To convert something, such as an agreement or testimony, into written form for the record.
   - Simple: To put something into written form, especially an agreement or a spoken promise.
   - _The clerk was told to reduce the witness's account to a sworn statement._
   - _They reduced the terms of the settlement to a formal document that evening._

## Verb

6. To lose weight, especially as a deliberate effort to become slimmer. *(dated)*
   - Simple: To lose body weight, usually on purpose by eating less.
14. To translate a book, document, or other text into another language. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: To turn a book or document into another language.

## Other meanings

- (verb) To transform one problem into another, so that any solution to the second would also give a solution to the first.
- (verb) To convert a syllogism into a clearer or simpler logical form, usually a recognized standard pattern.
- (verb) To remove an officer, soldier, or regiment from the military establishment and its regular payroll.
- (verb) To reform troops from a defensive square back into a line or column formation.
- (verb) To annul something by legal means, so that it has no further legal force.

## Origin

From Middle English reducen, borrowed through Old French reduire from Latin redūcō, built from re- ("back") plus dūcō ("lead").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/reduce (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).