contract

/ˈkän-ˌtrakt/

Middle English contract, contraȝt, contrait, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French contract, contrait, contrat (also continental Middle French), borrowed from Latin contractus "lessening in size, undertaking of a transaction, legal or commercial agreement," from contrac-, variant stem of contrahere "to draw together, reduce in size, bring together, enter into (an agreement, formal relationship), bring about, catch (an illness)" + -tus, suffix of action nouns

noun

  1. a binding agreement between two or more persons or parties; especially : one legally enforceable

  2. a business arrangement for the supply of goods or services at a fixed price

  3. the act of marriage or an agreement to marry

make parts on contract

verb

  1. to bring on oneself especially inadvertently : incur

  2. to become affected with

  3. to establish or undertake by contract

contracting debts

contract pneumonia

contract shrink condense compress constrict deflate mean to decrease in bulk or volume. contract applies to a drawing together of surfaces or particles or a reduction of area or length. shrink implies a contracting or a loss of material and stresses a falling short of original dimensions.

adjective

  1. hired to execute a contract

a contract worker