curtail
to reduce or cut short something
Word origin: From Old French courtault, cut short, related to Latin curtus, shortened.
Curtail in a sentence
Here are example sentences showing curtail in a sentence.
Budget cuts forced the museum to curtail its evening hours.
Budget cuts forced the museum to curtail its hours and cancel several public programs.
Using “curtail” well
Curtail means to cut short or reduce, often something ongoing such as rights, hours, or spending. It pairs with trim and shorten and implies a deliberate reduction.
More GRE words starting with C
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having a hidden or mysterious meaning understood only by initiates
a harsh, jarring mixture of sounds
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an event causing great damage, loss, or distress
misty, dim, or dark, and therefore obscure
Questions about “curtail”
Learn words the way the GRE tests them.
Vocabulary sticks when you meet it in real sentences. Practise these words inside text completion and sentence equivalence questions.