reduced
- 1Simple past and past participle of reduce.
The new policy reduced traffic in the city center.
Costs were reduced by nearly half last year.
UsageAlso in be reduced to + -ing or a noun, for being brought down to a worse state: she was reduced to begging, reduced to tears.
- 2Made smaller or less in size, amount, or degree.
Engineers reported a reduced risk of failure after the upgrade.
The medication led to reduced inflammation within a few days.
UsageUsually before a noun: reduced risk, a reduced budget; with prices it can also mean marked down.
Similarlower, diminished, lessened
Oppositeheightened, raised
- 3Offered or sold at a lower price than usual; discounted.
Shoppers crowded the aisle of reduced goods after the holidays.
The bakery sells reduced bread at the end of each day.
UsageAn item is reduced to a new price: the coat is reduced to thirty dollars; shops sell reduced items.
Similardiscounted, cut-price
Less common meaning
- 4Of a sauce or similar liquid: thickened and concentrated by simmering so that part of the water boils away.
The chef spooned a glossy reduced wine sauce onto each plate.
A reduced stock forms the base of many classic dishes.
Similarconcentrated
Oppositediluted
Note
A kitchen term turns the usual sense on its head. Cooks reduce a stock or sauce by simmering it until part of the water evaporates, and what remains is thicker and more intense in flavor. The word measures volume lost, not value lost: a reduced sauce is richer, not lesser. It usually sits before the noun, as in a reduced red wine sauce.
Checked 6 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- Simmering stock or sauce evaporates water, thickening the liquid and concentrating its flavor. app.cookwell.com
Showing meanings only.
reduced is a form of reduce
reduce, verb: To bring down the size, quantity, quality, value, or intensity of something. Full entry
- Spelling
- reduce → reduced: add -d
Practice
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