Dictionary
Find
in
Dictionary
Thesaurus
Translations

Click to move up the list of words
currycomb
curse
cursed
cursive
cursor
cursorial
cursory
curt
curtail
curtail step
curtain
curtain call
curtain lecture
curtain raiser
curtain speech
curtain time
curtain wall
Click to move down the list of words
Print Preview
See pronunciation key
Search for "curtail" in all of MSN Encarta
E-mail this entry
Blog about this entry on MSN Spaces
Download the MSN Encarta Right-Click Dictionary

curtail

cur·tail [ kur táyl ] (past and past participle cur·tailed, present participle cur·tail·ing, 3rd person present singular cur·tails)


transitive verb 
Definition:
 
cut short: to reduce the length or duration of something

[15th century. Alteration of curtal]

cur·tail·ment noun
Advertisement

Also on Encarta
Englishtown: Learn English online
Our Partners
Also on MSN
Encarta Message Boards (© Rubberball/Jupiterimages)
Shopping
© 2009 Microsoft