French Conversation · Level 104
60 words
French word
contraction
Pronunciation
IPA/kɔ̃tʁaksjɔ̃/
Meaning
- feminine nounshortening
Example
La contraction de ce mot est courante.
The shortening of this word is common.
More examples
On entend souvent la contraction des syllabes dans la parole rapide.
One often hears the contraction of syllables in rapid speech.
Core concept
Separate pieces of a word or phrase pulling together into a tighter, shorter form.
Common phrases
contraction de syllabes
contraction of syllables
contraction grammaticale
grammatical contraction
Similar words
élision: The dropping of a sound or letter so neighboring words run together.
apostrophe: The mark ' indicating missing letters or a combination of words.
liaison: The pronunciation of a final sound at the start of the next word.
enchaînement: The continuous pronunciation of sounds across a word boundary.
Definition in French
Réduction d'un mot ou d'un groupe de mots par suppression ou fusion de sons ou de lettres.
Word origin
French contraction comes from Latin contractio, from contrahere, meaning 'draw together', and acquired its linguistic sense through the idea of making a form shorter.
Usage tips
- In French grammar, contraction differs from elision: contraction combines forms, while elision removes a vowel before a vowel sound, as in l'homme.
Other meanings
- contractionnoun
- reductionnoun
Opposites
- extensionextensionnoun
- allongementlengtheningnoun
Related words
- contractercontractverb
- contractécontractedadjective