truncate — to shorten something by cutting off a part of it
Part of speech: VERB
Definition: to shorten something by cutting off a part of it
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈtrʌŋkeɪt/
Example Sentences
- My professor truncated his 3-hour lecture to 1 hour after seeing students yawning.
- The database will automatically truncate phone numbers to 10 digits.
- She had to truncate her wedding speech when the cake started melting.
truncate
VERB[/ˈtrʌŋkeɪt/]
to shorten something by cutting off a part of it

To stop the endlessly boring speech, the angry boss used giant scissors to violently truncate the long paper scroll.

TRUNC(trunk) + ATE(make) — by chopping off all the branches to make only the TRUNC(trunk) remain, the lumberjack managed to completely truncate the tree.

Because the massive statue could not fit under the low gate, the workers were forced to truncate its tall top hat.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
From Latin truncatus, meaning 'to cut off' or 'to maim,' derived from truncus meaning 'trunk' or 'main stem.' The original image was of cutting off branches from a tree trunk.
Breakdown
trunc- (trunk/main stem) + -ate (verb suffix meaning 'to make' or 'to cause')
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“My professor truncated his 3-hour lecture to 1 hour after seeing students yawning.”
“The database will automatically truncate phone numbers to 10 digits.”
“She had to truncate her wedding speech when the cake started melting.”
“The system truncates file names longer than 255 characters.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
Related
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