1. shortening a text by condensing or omitting parts while retaining the essential content
Usage: present participle of ‘abridge’
2. reducing or limiting something, especially rights or freedoms
Usage: formal; often used in legal contexts

Examples

• The editor is abridging the novel for younger readers.
• She spent weeks abridging the 500-page report into a 50-page summary.
• The publisher is abridging several classic works for the new series.
• The new law risks abridging citizens’ constitutional rights.
• They accused the government of abridging freedom of speech.
• The committee is abridging the lengthy proposal to focus on key points.