| Noun | 1. | contraction - (physiology) a shortening or tensing of a part or organ (especially of a muscle or muscle fiber)shortening - act of decreasing in length; "the dress needs shortening" contracture - an abnormal and usually permanent contraction of a muscle tetanus - a sustained muscular contraction resulting from a rapid series of nerve impulses uterine contraction - a rhythmic tightening in labor of the upper uterine musculature that contracts the size of the uterus and pushes the fetus toward the birth canal vaginismus - muscular contraction that causes the vagina to close; usually an anxiety reaction before coitus or pelvic examination physiology - the branch of the biological sciences dealing with the functioning of organisms | |
| 2. | contraction - the process or result of becoming smaller or pressed together; "the contraction of a gas on cooling"shrinkage, shrinking - process or result of becoming less or smaller; "the material lost 2 inches per yard in shrinkage" | |
| 3. | contraction - a word formed from two or more words by omitting or combining some sounds; "`won't' is a contraction of `will not'"; "`o'clock' is a contraction of `of the clock'"word - a unit of language that native speakers can identify; "words are the blocks from which sentences are made"; "he hardly said ten words all morning" | |
| 4. | contraction - the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope | |