1510s, "make shorter;" 1560s, "grow shorter," from short (adj.) + -en (1); the earlier form of the verb was simply short, from Old English sceortian "to grow short, become short; run short, fail," gescyrtan "to make short."
雙語例句
1. As they shorten, cells become more prone to disease and death.
細(xì)胞變小后就會(huì)更容易感染疾病，也更容易死亡。
來自柯林斯例句
2. Her father paid ￡1,000 for an operation to shorten her nose.
她父親花了1,000英鎊給她做了削鼻手術(shù)。
來自柯林斯例句
3. When the days shorten in winter some people suffer depression.