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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 (gcide)

Contraction \Con*trac"tion\, n. [L. contractio: cf. F.
contraction.]
1. The act or process of contracting, shortening, or
shrinking; the state of being contracted; as, contraction
of the heart, of the pupil of the eye, or of a tendon; the
contraction produced by cold.
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2. (Math.) The process of shortening an operation.
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3. The act of incurring or becoming subject to, as
liabilities, obligation, debts, etc.; the process of
becoming subject to; as, the contraction of a disease.
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4. Something contracted or abbreviated, as a word or phrase;
-- as, plenipo for plenipotentiary; crim. con. for
criminal conversation, etc.
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5. (Gram.) The shortening of a word, or of two words, by the
omission of a letter or letters, or by reducing two or
more vowels or syllables to one; as, ne'er for never;
can't for can not; don't for do not; it's for it is.
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6. A marriage contract. [Obs.] --Shak.
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