Compressed

Part of speech: adjective, verb

Pronunciation: /kəmˈpɹɛst/

Definitions

1. Characterized by a reduction in size resulting from external pressure being applied
2. Made smaller or denser by applying force or pressure to decrease its size ; made more dense or closely packed together ; presented in a brief or succinct form to save space or time
3. Forced into a smaller shape or volume by squeezing or pressing ; arranged tightly so that parts are closely joined ; conveyed using fewer words or elements for simplicity

Etymology: The verb "compress" grew out of a Latin verb built from two simple parts: "com-", meaning "together", and "premere", meaning "to press". Latin "comprimere" meant to press things together, and its past participle "compressus" passed through Late Latin "compressare", which means "to press hard or together", into Old French and then Middle English. The Middle French noun "compresse", a pad pressed against a wound, took a separate route into English, and it is the ancestor of the modern medical "compress". This entry is a form of the verb, so the adjective sense simply follows from that root: an object that has had pressure applied so that its volume shrinks. The same root gives "press", "pressure", and "imprimatur" through its Latin relatives.

Synonyms: condensed, squeezed, compact, pressed, shrunken

Antonyms: expanded, enlarged, stretched, inflated, opened