Lengthen and Shorten

Opposite meaning words

sentence examples collocations

Lengthen

Lengthen verb - To make longer.
Usage example: I had to lengthen the handle of the paint roller in order to reach the top of the wall
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Synonyms for Lengthen
Antonyms for Lengthen
Shorten is an antonym for lengthen in topics: extend, protract.
Nearby Words: length, lengthy, lengthening

Shorten

Shorten verb - To make less in extent or duration.
Usage example: if Grandma has to go shopping today, you'll need to shorten your visit
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Synonyms for Shorten
Antonyms for Shorten
Lengthen is an antonym for shorten in topics: cut, diminish.
Nearby Words: short, shortly, shortness, shortening
Similar words of lengthen

Similar words of shorten

Common collocations

life lengthen life shorten life
process lengthen process shorten process
span lengthen span shorten span
range lengthen range shorten range
Other words: season, time, stride, sentence, bit, game, hair, journey, skirt, timer, lifespan, times, rounds, limbs, lives, sounds.

Both words in one sentence

  • Useful Notes / British Accents In Real Life, someone from Yorkshire will either shorten or lengthen the vowel sounds depending on the sentence.
    Source: Useful Notes / British Accents
  • Video Game / ActRaiser At best you can slightly lengthen or shorten your leap by holding the respective direction.
    Source: Video Game / ActRaiser
  • Our Gnomes Are Weirder In the book A Gnomewrench in the Dwarfworks and its sequel, A Gnomewrench in the Peopleworks, gnomes are sadistic Lawful Evil shapeshifters, of a certain type — they're always recognisably gnomes, but they can lengthen or shorten their limbs, turn their arms into swords, etc.
    Source: Our Gnomes Are Weirder
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Cite this Source
Shorten and Lengthen. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/lengthen/shorten
Lengthen & Shorten. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/lengthen/shorten>.
Shorten or Lengthen. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/lengthen/shorten.

Antonyms for lengthen


Antonyms for shorten

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "lengthen" and "shorten" have occurred on timeline