Definition of "curtail"

curtail

/kɜːˈteɪl/

verb
third-person singular simple present curtails, present participle curtailing, simple past and past participle curtailed
1. (transitive, obsolete) To cut short the tail of an animal
2. (transitive) To shorten or abridge the duration of something; to truncate.
3. (transitive, figuratively) To limit or restrict, keep in check.
  Quotations
  This is the rump of the C.L.C. branch to Southport Lord Street, which lost its passenger services beyond Aintree from January 7, 1952, whereupon the timetable between Gateacre and Aintree was greatly curtailed.
  1960 December, “Talking of Trains: Branch report”, in Trains Illustrated, page 708
  The current Israeli government has been working to curtail and eliminate critical voices within Israeli society in recent years, particularly those fighting to end the occupation and expose human rights violations against Palestinians and marginalized communities.
  2018, “Israeli gov't is trying to defund +972 Magazine, report says”, in +972 Magazine
noun
plural curtails
1. (architecture) A scroll termination, as of a step, etc.