reduce (EN)

verb

verb “reduce”

1. to make something smaller in size, amount, or degree
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   The company plans to reduce its expenses by cutting unnecessary costs.
2. (with "to") to bring something to a worse or less desirable state
   The flood reduced the bridge to a pile of debris.
3. (in the military) to conquer or capture a place by force
   The troops reduced the enemy fort after weeks of fighting.
4. (in cooking) to thicken a liquid by boiling off excess water
   Reduce the sauce over medium heat until it becomes thick.
5. (in mathematics) to simplify an expression or equation
   Reduce the equation to solve for x.
6. (in chemistry) to cause a substance to gain electrons or lose oxygen
   In this reaction, the copper ions are reduced to metal.
7. (in medicine) to correct a dislocation or fracture by returning bones to their normal position
   The paramedic reduced the patient's dislocated elbow on site.
8. (in computing) to transform one problem into another
   The algorithm reduces the complex data set to manageable parts.