- 1[intransitive, transitive] shrink (something) to become smaller, especially when washed in water that is too hot; to make clothes, cloth, etc. smaller in this way My sweater shrank in the wash.
Want to learn more?
Find out which words work together and produce more natural sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app.
- 2[intransitive, transitive] to become or to make something smaller in size or amount The tumor had shrunk to the size of a pea. The market for their products is shrinking. shrink something There was a movie called “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.” Television in a sense has shrunk the world. see shrunken
- 3[intransitive] + adv./prep. to move back or away from something because you are frightened or shocked synonym cower He shrank back against the wall as he heard them approaching. Idioms
shrink
verbNAmE//ʃrɪŋk//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they shrink he / she / it shrinks
past simple shrank
past simple shrunk
past participle shrunk
-ing form shrinking
a way of describing a very shy person Phrasal Verbsshrink from
Check pronunciation: shrink