Library / English Dictionary

CONTRACT

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A variety of bridge in which the bidder receives points toward game only for the number of tricks he bid

Synonyms:

contract; contract bridge

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("contract" is a kind of...):

bridge (any of various card games based on whist for four players)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "contract"):

no-trump (a version of contract bridge in which no suit is designated as trump for the duration of the hand)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A binding agreement between two or more persons that is enforceable by law

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("contract" is a kind of...):

written agreement (a legal document summarizing the agreement between parties)

Meronyms (parts of "contract"):

reserve clause (a clause that used to be part of the contract with a professional athlete extending the contract for a year beyond its expiration)

fine print; small print (the part of a contract that contains reservations and qualifications that are often printed in small type)

arbitration clause (a clause in a contract providing for arbitration of disputes arising under the contract)

boilerplate (standard formulations uniformly found in certain types of legal documents or news stories)

Domain member category:

terminated ((of e.g. a contract or term of office) having come to an end)

kept; unbroken ((especially of promises or contracts) not violated or disregarded)

broken; unkept ((especially of promises or contracts) having been violated or disregarded)

subscribed ((of a contract or will or other document) having a signature written at the end)

renegociate; renegotiate (revise the terms of in order to limit or regain excess profits gained by the contractor)

contract; declaration ((contract bridge) the highest bid becomes the contract setting the number of tricks that the bidder must make)

handclasp; handshake; handshaking; shake (grasping and shaking a person's hand (as to acknowledge an introduction or to agree on a contract))

loophole (an ambiguity (especially one in the text of a law or contract) that makes it possible to evade a difficulty or obligation)

article; clause (a separate section of a legal document (as a statute or contract or will))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "contract"):

indenture (a contract binding one party into the service of another for a specified term)

contract of hazard; sale in gross (a sale of a tract of land as a whole without a warranty as to the acreage)

acquisition agreement; merger agreement (contract governing the merger of two or more companies)

licensing agreement (contract giving someone the legal right to use a patent or trademark)

distribution agreement (a contract governing the marketing of an item of merchandise)

employment agreement; employment contract (contract between employer and employee)

collective agreement; labor agreement; labor contract (contract between labor and management governing wages and benefits and working conditions)

concession; grant (a contract granting the right to operate a subsidiary business)

articles of agreement; shipping articles (a contract between crew and captain of a ship)

partnership (a contract between two or more persons who agree to pool talent and money and share profits or losses)

subcontract (a contract assigning to another party some obligations of a prior contract)

severable contract (a contract which, in the event of a breach by one of the parties, can be considered as several independent agreements expressed in a single instrument)

service contract (a contract for maintenance services)

contract under seal; sealed instrument; special contract (a contract that is signed and has the (wax) seal of the signer attached)

adhesion contract; contract of adhesion (a contract that heavily restricts one party while leaving the other free (as some standard form printed contracts); implies inequality in bargaining power)

aleatory contract (a contract whose performance by one party depends on the occurrence of an uncertain contingent event (but if it is contingent on the outcome of a wager it is not enforceable))

bilateral contract (a contract involving mutual promises (each party is both promisor and promisee))

charter (a contract to hire or lease transportation)

conditional contract (a contract whose performance depends on a fact or event that affects legal relations)

cost-plus contract (a contract in which the contractor is paid his total cost plus a stated percentage of profit)

gambling contract (a contract whose performance by one party is contingent on the outcome of a bet; unenforceable by statute in most jurisdictions)

lease (a contract granting use or occupation of property during a specified time for a specified payment)

marriage contract; marriage settlement (a prenuptial agreement or contract)

output contract (a contract in which you promise to deliver your entire output to the other party who promises to accept it)

insurance; insurance policy; policy (written contract or certificate of insurance)

purchase agreement; purchase contract (a contract stating the terms of a purchase)

quasi contract (a contract created by law for reasons of justice without any expression of assent)

requirements contract (a contract in which you agree to purchase all your requirements of a particular sort from one party)

Derivation:

contract (enter into a contractual arrangement)

contract (engage by written agreement)

contractual (relating to or part of a binding legal agreement)

Sense 3

Meaning:

(contract bridge) the highest bid becomes the contract setting the number of tricks that the bidder must make

Synonyms:

contract; declaration

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("contract" is a kind of...):

bid; bidding ((bridge) the number of tricks a bridge player is willing to contract to make)

Domain category:

contract (a binding agreement between two or more persons that is enforceable by law)

Holonyms ("contract" is a part of...):

bridge (any of various card games based on whist for four players)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Be stricken by an illness, fall victim to an illness

Example:

She took a chill

Synonyms:

contract; get; take

Classified under:

Verbs of grooming, dressing and bodily care

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

come down; sicken (get sick)

Verb group:

catch (contract)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

catch (contract)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

contracting (becoming infected)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Become smaller or draw together

Example:

The balloon shrank

Synonyms:

contract; shrink

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

decrease; diminish; fall; lessen (decrease in size, extent, or range)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

flex (contract)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Antonym:

expand (extend in one or more directions)

Derivation:

contraction (the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Reduce in scope while retaining essential elements

Example:

The manuscript must be shortened

Synonyms:

abbreviate; abridge; contract; cut; foreshorten; reduce; shorten

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

decrease; lessen; minify (make smaller)

Verb group:

cut; edit; edit out (cut and assemble the components of)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

concentrate; condense; digest (make more concise)

bowdlerise; bowdlerize; castrate; expurgate; shorten (edit by omitting or modifying parts considered indelicate)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Antonym:

expand (add details, as to an account or idea; clarify the meaning of and discourse in a learned way, usually in writing)

Derivation:

contraction (the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Make or become more narrow or restricted

Example:

The road narrowed

Synonyms:

contract; narrow

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

bottleneck (become narrow, like a bottleneck)

taper off (become smaller or less active)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

contraction (the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Compress or concentrate

Example:

Congress condensed the three-year plan into a six-month plan

Synonyms:

concentrate; condense; contract

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

alter; change; modify (cause to change; make different; cause a transformation)

Verb group:

condense (become more compact or concentrated)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

contraction (the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope)

Sense 6

Meaning:

Enter into a contractual arrangement

Synonyms:

contract; undertake

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

assure; promise (make a promise or commitment)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

stipulate (make an oral contract or agreement in the verbal form of question and answer that is necessary to give it legal force)

sign (be engaged by a written agreement)

condition; qualify; specify; stipulate (specify as a condition or requirement in a contract or agreement; make an express demand or provision in an agreement)

lease; rent (let for money)

charter; hire; lease; rent (hold under a lease or rental agreement; of goods and services)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s to INFINITIVE

Sentence example:

They contract to move

Derivation:

contract (a binding agreement between two or more persons that is enforceable by law)

contractor (someone (a person or firm) who contracts to build things)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Make smaller

Example:

The heat contracted the woollen garment

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

reduce; shrink (reduce in size; reduce physically)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

purse; wrinkle (gather or contract into wrinkles or folds; pucker)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

contraction (the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope)

Sense 8

Meaning:

Squeeze or press together

Example:

the spasm contracted the muscle

Synonyms:

compact; compress; constrict; contract; press; squeeze

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

tighten (become tight or tighter)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

choke; scrag (wring the neck of)

choke; fret; gag (be too tight; rub or press)

bear down; overbear (contract the abdominal muscles during childbirth to ease delivery)

convulse (cause to contract)

convulse (contract involuntarily, as in a spasm)

strangulate (constrict a hollow organ or vessel so as to stop the flow of blood or air)

astringe (constrict or bind or draw together)

prim (contract one's lips)

choke; strangle (constrict (someone's) throat and keep from breathing)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

contraction ((physiology) a shortening or tensing of a part or organ (especially of a muscle or muscle fiber))

contractor (a bodily organ that contracts)

contracture (an abnormal and usually permanent contraction of a muscle)

Sense 9

Meaning:

Engage by written agreement

Example:

They signed two new pitchers for the next season

Synonyms:

contract; sign; sign on; sign up

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "contract" is one way to...):

employ; engage; hire (engage or hire for work)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "contract"):

contract out (assign a job to someone outside one's own business)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

contract (a binding agreement between two or more persons that is enforceable by law)

Credits

 Context examples: 

They also improved the heart muscle cell’s ability to contract and relax.

(New stem cell combination could help to repair damaged hearts, University of Cambridge)

Results showed that, in addition to checking the deterioration of the disease, cells’ capacity to contract was seen to increase.

(Molecule created in Brazil helps fight heart failure, Agência Brasil)

They also release specific chemicals that cause blood vessels to expand or contract, thereby regulating blood flow in the brain.

(Brain tumor invasion along blood vessels may lead to new cancer treatments, NIH)

MTs can transmit mechanical signals and, like rods or struts, resist compression in contracting heart cells.

(Microtubules’ role in heart cell contraction revealed, NIH)

A team from Ohio State University set out to improve the ability of the heart to contract by using protein engineering.

(Engineered protein restores heart function, NIH)

While scientists know a lot about how blood clots form, relatively little was known about how they contract — a slow process that takes an hour to complete.

(How And Why Blood Clots Shrink, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The mudstone indicates the presence of bodies of standing water in the form of lakes that remained for long periods of time, possibly repeatedly expanding and contracting during hundreds to millions of years.

(NASA's Curiosity Rover Team Confirms Ancient Lakes on Mars, NASA)

Oversight and management of grants or contracts

(Academic Grants and Contracts Administration, NCI Thesaurus)

These specialized pigment cells expand and contract and push the pigment to the surface.

(Octopuses can dream, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Once part of a much larger ice field, Yakutat has been contracting for hundreds of years.

(Retreat of Yakutat Glacier, NASA)