What does "retrenchment" mean?
A curtailment or reduction.
Retrenchment
/ɹɪˈtɹɛn(t)ʃm(ə)nt/ noun
noun ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A curtailment or reduction.
- Grammar: retrenchment is listed as noun.
- Nearest alternatives: downsizing, abbreviation, abridgment, abstract.
- Useful contrasts: advance, aggrandizement, expansion.
- Usage evidence: It agrees that redundant services should not be continued but is not unmindful of the fact that too much retrenchment of rail services now may ultimately prove detrimental to the economy of the country.
How to use "retrenchment"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "retrenchment" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
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Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "retrenchment" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "retrenchment" is acting as noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
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3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 A curtailment or reduction. countable, uncountable
"It agrees that redundant services should not be continued but is not unmindful of the fact that too much retrenchment of rail services now may ultimately prove detrimental to the economy of the country."
- 2 A defensive work constructed within a fortification to make it more defensible by allowing defenders to retreat into and fight from it even after the enemy has taken the outer work. dated
"The Half-Moon is a Work always raiſed before the Baſtion's Point, being ſo named from the Lowneſs of its Gorges Cavity, &c. and is to ſecure the Two Faces of the Baſtion; but when the Faces have but a weak Defence from the Ravelin, theſe Works are ſoon made uſeleſs or ruined, and give the Beſieged an opportunity of Lodgment, and may ſerve for Batteries and Flanks againſt the oppoſing Baſtions; however they may be retrenched by Traverſes, yet they will not fail to attack entirely in the Face, or where you have your laſt Retrenchment, alſo that called the Counterguard runs the like Hazard."
- 3 The adoption of a defensive and hostile posture; refusal to compromise, radicalization. countable, especially, uncountable
"Confronted by their practices again and again, these individuals and organizations in the gay community have made token gestures to appease the demands of people of color, while in the long run these confrontations have resulted in retrenchment of attitudes and stereotypes by gay whites."
- 4 the reduction of expenditures in order to become financially stable wordnet
- 5 A curtailment or reduction.; An act of reducing expenses; economizing. countable, specifically, uncountable
"Must my anxious management, my prudent retrenchments, dear Margaretta's savings, all go!"
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 entrenchment consisting of an additional interior fortification to prolong the defense wordnet
- 7 A curtailment or reduction.; An act of terminating the employment of a worker or making an employee redundant, often to reduce expenses; a layoff. countable, specifically, uncountable
- 8 Withdrawal. broadly, countable, uncountable
"Even then—10 long years ago—our disillusionment over past failures, our revulsion against moralistic posturing, our retrenchment from prescribing what was best for other people, our withdrawal symptoms from the exhilarations of overcommitment—all these argued for the perspective of diversity; for lowering our goals."
Antonyms
Example
"It agrees that redundant services should not be continued but is not unmindful of the fact that too much retrenchment of rail services now may ultimately prove detrimental to the economy of the country."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "retrenchment"?
Common synonyms include: downsizing, abbreviation, abridgment, abstract, apocope, arrest.
How do you use "retrenchment" in a sentence?
It agrees that redundant services should not be continued but is not unmindful of the fact that too much retrenchment of rail services now may ultimately prove detrimental to the economy of the country.
How do you pronounce "retrenchment"?
Pronounced /ɹɪˈtɹɛn(t)ʃm(ə)nt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Probably partly from both of the following: * Middle French retrenchement, retranchement (“removal of a portion from a larger whole; reduction of expenses”) (modern French retranchement (“deduction, subtraction”)), from retrancher, retranchier (“to get rid of, remove completely; to remove a portion from a larger whole; to reduce expenses; to deprive (oneself) of”) [and other forms] + -ment (suffix forming nouns usually of an action or a state resulting from an action). Retrancher and retranchier are derived from Old French re- (prefix meaning ‘again, once more’) + tranchier, trenchier (“to cut”) [and other forms] (modern French trancher (“to slice”)); the further etymology is uncertain, but one possibility is that the Old French words are from Latin truncāre, the present active infinitive of truncō (“to mutilate by cutting off pieces; to truncate”), from truncus (“tree trunk; piece cut off”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *twerḱ- (“to carve; to cut off, trim”). * retrench (“to cut down, reduce; to reduce expenses; to make (an employee) redundant”) + -ment. Retrench is derived from Middle French retrancher, retranchier: see above.
Etymology 2
Probably either from: * Middle French retranchement (“defensive work”) (modern French retranchement (“entrenchment”)), from re- (prefix meaning ‘again, once more’) + tranche (“trench”) + -ment (suffix forming nouns usually of an action or a state resulting from an action); or * retrench (“to construct one or more retrenchments; to protect using retrenchments; to fortify”) + -ment. Retrench is probably derived from Middle French retrancher, retranchier (“to fortify with trenches and banks”), from Old French re- + tranchier, trenchier (“to cut”); see further at etymology 1.
Etymology 3
Internal formation from retrench (“take up a defensive position”) + -ment, possibly reinforced by misinterpretation of Etymology 1.