as in squeezing
the act or process of reducing the size or volume of something by or as if by pressing
the contracting of the time frame for the primaries tends to favor candidates who are already well-known
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1
as in getting
to become affected with (a disease or disorder)
before vaccines were invented, people lived in fear of contracting polio
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2
as in shrinking
to become smaller in size or volume through the drawing together of particles of matter
metal contracts at low temperatures
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3
as in compressing
to reduce in size or volume by or as if by pressing parts or members together
contract the calf muscles in your legs
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4
as in bargaining
to come to an arrangement as to a course of action
the farmer contracted for delivery of the hay by the first of July
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of contracting
Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News, 6 Jan. 2026
This month, the number of those businesses that are certified for preference in state contracting dropped again, extending a 17-month downward trend.
—Center Square, The Washington Examiner, 28 Dec. 2025
Nearly half of the payments for work done weren’t recorded in the state’s public-facing contracting system.
—Miami Herald, 12 Dec. 2025
No, the executive had simply resigned himself to the contracting Hollywood this all represented.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 12 Dec. 2025
The stress of expanding and contracting can cause crazing, cracking, and brittleness.
—Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 12 Dec. 2025
Amid federal pressure, the Dallas City Council has shifted its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to a new framework, aiming to safeguard funding while continuing efforts to support racial equity, minority contracting, and community resources citywide.
—Steve Pickett, CBS News, 10 Dec. 2025
The Contra Costa County Office of Education has alternatively said the district’s contracting practices are borne out of necessity.
—Sierra Lopez, Mercury News, 5 Dec. 2025
What's the approach, what are the contracting methods?
—Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
Kendrick Calfee
january 8, Kansas City Star, 8 Jan. 2026
Star Wars actor Kenneth Colley died on June 30 at his home in Kent, England, after contracting COVID and pneumonia.
—Brendan Le, PEOPLE, 5 Jan. 2026
Previously, Kim said on Instagram that his son was hospitalized after contracting a severe case of the flu.
—Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 1 Jan. 2026
For those who end up contracting the virus, there are treatments that may help reduce the duration of a person's symptoms or severity of illness.
—Dr. Jade Cobern, ABC News, 31 Dec. 2025
With Chair Powell’s December 10 admission of a 60,000 monthly overcount, the labor market has actually been contracting by 20,000 jobs per month since April.
—Katica Roy, Fortune, 31 Dec. 2025
In addition to being immoral, CFA’s support for BDS likely violates state law, AB 2844, which prohibits California from contracting with entities that engage in discrimination, including against Jews or Israelis.
—Mark Pinkert, Oc Register, 23 Dec. 2025
Preventive antibiotics can reduce your likelihood of contracting whooping cough if you get exposed.
—Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 22 Dec. 2025
This month, the agency published Level 2 alerts concerning the risk of contracting the chikungunya virus in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Cuba, and China.
—Michael Cappetta, Travel + Leisure, 16 Dec. 2025
Noun
Pearson, an ex-NYPD inspector who was empowered by Adams to exercise significant sway over the city’s law enforcement and contracting operations, hasn’t furnished any text messages in response to discovery demands, Scola wrote.
—Verb
According to chief medical officers in the health system, KU Med’s hospitals are facing operational challenges with high patient counts and staff contracting the flu while treating patients.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for contracting
Noun
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Hassan’s team instead squeezed a photon’s intensity and demonstrated real-time control, fluctuating between intensity and phase-squeezing by adjusting the silica’s position relative to the beams.—
Verb
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If Carolina is thinking about the big picture, giving Coker the extra year, perhaps valued as a first- or second-round tender, is just getting ahead of a formality.—
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Chief among them is getting to be a mentor to newer cast members, such as Marcello Hernández.—
Verb
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Scientists believe that shrinking this laser-plasma accelerator (LPA) technology could eventually allow these diagnostic tools to be installed directly at large-scale fusion facilities.—
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That’s a relatively small slice of the pie, and it’s been shrinking in recent years as interest rates have gone up.—
Verb
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Outside the dome, a series of machines connected by undulating pipes moves the CO2 out of the dome for compressing and condensing.—
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Always, understanding comes from pinpointing the relevant factors and forgetting the rest, from compressing nature’s endless intricacies into a human-readable story about the universe.—
Verb
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On December 31, the unions filed with the State of California, alleging unfair labor practices by Solano County and arguing that Solano is not bargaining in good faith.—
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The announcement comes after resort ownership and its patrollers union, which have been bargaining since June, reached an impasse in negotiations.—
Noun
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This impressive deal only applies to the six-piece set, which includes five compression packing cubes and one drawstring bag in select colors.—
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Shortly after, viewers see chest compressions being performed on Jo as Link (Chris Carmack) prays in a church surrounded by candles.—
Verb
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Through the air, their pass-catching group is one of the worst in the playoffs.—
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At Oklahoma, Livingstone will be catching passes from John Mateer, who completed 62% of his passes for 2,885 yards in 2025, accumulating 14 touchdown passes to go with 11 interceptions.—
Verb
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For women, this meant decreasing intake to about 400 to 600 calories three days per week, while men reduced calories to around 500 to 700.—
-
An expensive habit with a decreasing ROI.—
Cite this Entry
“Contracting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contracting. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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