a shortened version of a written work the act of abridging or state of being abridged
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
a•bridg•ment
(ə brij′mənt),USA pronunciation n.
- a shortened or condensed form of a book, speech, etc., that still retains the basic contents:an abridgment of Tolstoy'sWar and Peace.
- the act or process of abridging.
- the state of being abridged.
- reduction or curtailment:abridgment of civil rights.
- Middle French abregement. See abridge, -ment
- late Middle English abreg(g)ement, abrygement 1400–50
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged digest, epitome; compendium, synopsis, abstract, summary, précis, conspectus; syllabus, brief, outline.
- 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged reduction, shortening, contraction, compression.
- 1, 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged expansion, enlargement.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'abridgment' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
-ment
- Book of Mormon
- O, o
- abbreviation
- abr.
- breviary
- compendium
- condensation
- digest
- epitome
- full
- reductive
- synopsis