reduction definition | Dictionary.com

re⋅duc⋅tion

[ri-duhk-shuh

–noun

1.	the act of reducing or the state of being reduced.

2.	the amount by which something is reduced or diminished.

3.	a form produced by reducing; a copy on a smaller scale.

4.	Cell Biology. meiosis, esp. the first meiotic cell division in which the chromosome number is reduced by half.

5.	Chemistry. the process or result of reducing.

6.	Movies. the process of making a print of a narrower gauge from a print of a wider gauge: the reduction of 35-mm films to 16-mm for the school market.

7.	a village or settlement of Indians in South America established and governed by Spanish Jesuit missionaries.

Origin:
1475–85; earlier reduccion < MF reduction < L reductiōn- (s. of reductiō) a bringing back, equiv. to reduct(us) (ptp. of redūcere; see reduce ) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms:

re⋅duc⋅tion⋅al, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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re·duc·tion (rĭ-dŭk'shən)

The act or process of reducing.
The result of reducing: a reduction in absenteeism.
The amount by which something is lessened or diminished: a reduction of 12 percent in violent crime.
Biology The first meiotic division, in which the chromosome number is reduced. Also called reduction division.
Chemistry
1. A decrease in positive valence or an increase in negative valence by the gaining of electrons.
2. A reaction in which hydrogen is combined with a compound.
3. A reaction in which oxygen is removed from a compound.
4. The canceling of common factors in the numerator and denominator of a fraction.
5. The converting of a fraction to its decimal equivalent.
6. The converting of an expression or equation to its simplest form.
Mathematics
1. The canceling of common factors in the numerator and denominator of a fraction.
2. The converting of a fraction to its decimal equivalent.
3. The converting of an expression or equation to its simplest form.

[Middle English reduccion, restoration, from Old French reduction, from Latin reductiō, reductiōn-, from reductus, past participle of redūcere, to bring back; see reduce.]
re·duc'tion·al adj.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Reduction

Re*duc"tion\ (r?*d?k"sh?n), n. [F. r['e]duction, L. reductio. See Reduce.]

1. The act of reducing, or state of being reduced; conversion to a given state or condition; diminution; conquest; as, the reduction of a body to powder; the reduction of things to order; the reduction of the expenses of government; the reduction of a rebellious province.

2. (Arith. & Alq.) The act or process of reducing. See Reduce, v. t., 6. and To reduce an equation, To reduce an expression, under Reduce, v. t.

3. (Astron.) (a) The correction of observations for known errors of instruments, etc. (b) The preparation of the facts and measurements of observations in order to deduce a general result.

4. The process of making a copy of something, as a figure, design, or draught, on a smaller scale, preserving the proper proportions. --Fairholt.

5. (Logic) The bringing of a syllogism in one of the so-called imperfect modes into a mode in the first figure.

6. (Chem. & Metal.) The act, process, or result of reducing; as, the reduction of iron from its ores; the reduction of aldehyde from alcohol.

7. (Med.) The operation of restoring a dislocated or fractured part to its former place.

Reduction ascending (Arith.), the operation of changing numbers of a lower into others of a higher denomination, as cents to dollars.

Reduction descending (Arith.), the operation of changing numbers of a higher into others of a lower denomination, as dollars to cents.

Syn: Diminution; decrease; abatement; curtailment; subjugation; conquest; subjection.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : reduction

Spanish: reducción,

German: die Herabsetzung,

Japanese: 縮小

More Translations »

reduction

Any chemical reaction in which the atoms in a material take on electrons.

Note: Reduction is the opposite of oxidation.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Main Entry: re·duc·tion
Pronunciation: ri-'d&k-sh&n
Function: noun
1 : the replacement or realignment of a body part in normalposition or restoration of a bodily condition to normal
2 : the process of reducing by chemical or electrochemical means
3 : the psychological diminishment ofemotion or needs through activity or adjustment reduction>
4 :

MEIOSIS

; specifically : production of the gametic chromosome number in the first meiotic division

reduction re·duc·tion (rĭ-dŭk'shən)
n.

The act, process, or result of reducing.
The amount by which something is lessened or diminished.
Restoration of an injured or dislocated part to its normal anatomical relation by surgery or manipulation. Also called repositioning.
The first meiotic division, in which the chromosome number is reduced. Also called reduction division, reduction of chromosomes.
A decrease in positive valence or an increase in negative valence by the gaining of electrons.
A reaction in which hydrogen is combined with a compound.
A reaction in which oxygen is removed from a compound.

re·duc'tion·al adj.

reduction (rĭ-dŭk'shən) Pronunciation Key

The changing of a fraction into a simpler form, especially by dividing the numerator and denominator by a common factor. For example, the fraction ⁸/₁₂ can be reduced to ⁴/₆ , which can be further reduced to ²/₃ , in each case by dividing both the numerator and denominator by 2.
A chemical reaction in which an atom or ion gains electrons, thus undergoing a decrease in valence. If an iron atom having a valence of +3 gains an electron, the valence decreases to +2. Compare oxidation.

Our Living Language : Beginning students of chemistry are understandably puzzled by the term reduction: shouldn't a reduced atom or ion be one that loses electrons rather than gains them? The reason for the apparent contradiction comes from the early days of chemistry, where reduction and its counterpart, oxidation, were terms invented to describe reactions in which one substance lost an oxygen atom and the other substance gained it. In a reaction such as that between two molecules of hydrogen (2H₂) and one of oxygen (O₂) combining to produce two molecules of water (2H₂O), the hydrogen atoms have gained oxygen atoms and were said to have become "oxidized," while the oxygen atoms have (as it were) lost them by attaching themselves to the hydrogens, and were said to have become "reduced." Importantly, though, in the process of gaining an oxygen atom, the hydrogen atoms have had to give up their electrons and share them with the oxygen atoms, while the oxygen atoms have gained electrons. Thus comes the apparent paradox that the "reduced" oxygen has in fact gained something, namely electrons. Today the terms oxidation and reduction are used of any reaction, not just one involving oxygen, where electrons are (respectively) lost or gained.

reduction
(Or "contraction") The process of transforming an expression according to certain reduction rules. The most important forms are beta reduction (application of a lambda abstraction to one or more argument expressions) and delta reduction (application of a mathematical function to the required number of arguments).
An evaluation strategy (or reduction strategy), determines which part of an expression (which redex) to reduce first. There are many such strategies.
See graph reduction, string reduction, normal order reduction, applicative order reduction, parallel reduction, alpha conversion, beta conversion, delta conversion, eta conversion.
(1995-02-21)

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