verb

abbreviate

uh-BREE-vee-ayt/əˈbriːvieɪt/

To make something shorter.

Writers often abbreviate the title Doctor to Dr. before a name.

A simple sheet of paper shows “Doctor” changing via a right-pointing arrow into “Dr.”, making the shortening of a word directly visible.

Etymology

The central idea is simply “make shorter,” with the prefix reinforcing the verb rather than contributing an “away” meaning. The general act of shortening became specifically applicable to words and texts.

In context

U.S. Naval War College15:40

now in the time remaining i want to quickly address the asymmetric threats in the paper for instance of time i'll abbreviate this and get on to my main point

CSF 2013 | Panel Discussion: 21st Century Sea Power and Global Maritime Leadership

More examples

Please abbreviate September as Sept. on this form.
They abbreviated the ceremony because of the approaching storm.
Her notes use abbreviated versions of familiar technical terms.

Forms

abbreviate · abbreviates · abbreviated · abbreviating

Similar words

abridge: Usually shortens a work while preserving its main substance.
condense: Packs material more tightly, often through substantial rewriting.