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To make less; to reduce; to make smaller, or fewer; to diminish; to lower; to degrade; as, to lessen a kingdom, or a population; to lessen speed, rank, fortune. Charity . . . shall lessen his punishment. Calamy. St. Paul chose to magnify his office when ill men conspired to lessen it. Atterbury.

rians willingly accepted the aid of the lettered clergy, still chiefly of Roman birth, to reduce to writing the institutes of their forefathers. Milman.

To bring to a lower level; to overthrow; to topple down; to reduce to a flat surface; to lower. And their proud structures level with the ground. Sandys. He levels mountains and he raises plains. Dryden.

To free from grit; to reduce to an impalpable powder or paste.

To make lighter, or less heavy; to reduce in weight; to relieve of part of a load or burden; as, to lighten a ship by unloading; to lighten a load or burden.

A kiln or furnace in which limestone or shells are burned and reduced to lime.

he solid mass or cake which remains when oil is expressed. -- Linseed meal, linseed cake reduced to powder. -- Linseed oil, oil obtained by pressure from flaxseed.

A neutral tint given to spectacles, shade glasses for optical instruments, etc., which reduces the intensity without materially changing the color of the transmitted light.

To reduce the height of; as, to lower a fence or wall; to lower a chimney or turret.

A mass of mixed ingredients reduced to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure; a mass of anything in a soft pulpy state. Specifically (Brewing), ground or bruised malt, or meal of rye, wheat, corn, or other grain (or a mixture of malt and meal) steeped and stirred in hot water for making the wort.…

wadding of the same material, so that the shock on taking the beach through surf is much reduced. [Written also masula, masulah, etc.]

A partly reduced copper sulphide, obtained by alternately roasting and melting copper ore in separating the metal from associated iron ores, and called coarse metal, fine metal, etc., according to the grade of fineness. On the exterior it is dark brown or black, but on a fresh surface is yellow or bronzy in color.…

Having the qualities of meal; resembling meal; soft, dry, and friable; easily reduced to a condition resembling meal; as, a mealy potato.

To reduce from a solid to a liquid state, as by heat; to liquefy; as, to mell wax, tallow, or lead; to melt ice or snow.

To reduce to method; to dispose in due order; to arrange in a convenient manner; as, to methodize one's work or thoughts. Spectator.

To reduce to fine particles, or to small pieces, in a mill; to grind; to comminute.

of various shapes with rotary cutters. See Mill. High milling, milling in which grain is reduced to flour by a succession of crackings, or of slight and partial crushings, alternately with sifting and sorting the product. -- Low milling, milling in which the reduction is effected in a single crushing or grinding. --…

guished from the organic acids. -- Mineral blue, the name usually given to azurite, when reduced to an impalpable powder for coloring purposes. -- Mineral candle, a candle made of paraffine. -- Mineral caoutchouc, an elastic mineral pitch, a variety of bitumen, resembling caoutchouc in elasticity and softness. See C…

Greatly diminished size or form; reduced scale.

To reduce to the smallest part or proportion possible; to reduce to a minimum. Bentham.