1. (n.) To draw together or nearer; to reduce to a less compass; to shorten, narrow, or lessen; as, to contract one's sphere of action.

2. (n.) To draw together so as to wrinkle; to knit.

3. (n.) To bring on; to incur; to acquire; as, to contract a habit; to contract a debt; to contract a disease.

4. (n.) To enter into, with mutual obligations; to make a bargain or covenant for.

5. (n.) To betroth; to affiance.

6. (n.) To shorten by omitting a letter or letters or by reducing two or more vowels or syllables to one.

7. (v. i.) To be drawn together so as to be diminished in size or extent; to shrink; to be reduced in compass or in duration; as, iron contracts in cooling; a rope contracts when wet.

8. (v. i.) To make an agreement; to covenant; to agree; to bargain; as, to contract for carrying the mail.

9. (a.) Contracted; as, a contract verb.

10. (a.) Contracted; affianced; betrothed.

11. (n.) The agreement of two or more persons, upon a sufficient consideration or cause, to do, or to abstain from doing, some act; an agreement in which a party undertakes to do, or not to do, a particular thing; a formal bargain; a compact; an interchange of legal rights.

12. (n.) A formal writing which contains the agreement of parties, with the terms and conditions, and which serves as a proof of the obligation.

13. (n.) The act of formally betrothing a man and woman.