Decrease and Cram

noun

• A change downward.
  • usage: "there was a decrease in his temperature as the fever subsided"; "there was a sharp drop-off in sales"
  • synonyms: lessening, drop-off
• A process of becoming smaller or shorter.
  • synonyms: decrement
• The amount by which something decreases.
  • synonyms: decrement
• The act of decreasing or reducing something.
  • synonyms: diminution, reduction, step-down

verb

• Decrease in size, extent, or range.
  • usage: "The amount of homework decreased towards the end of the semester"; "The cabin pressure fell dramatically"; "her weight fell to under a hundred pounds"; "his voice fell to a whisper"
  • synonyms: diminish, lessen, fall
• Make smaller.
  • usage: "He decreased his staff"
  • synonyms: lessen, minify

• (v.t.) To cause to grow less; to diminish gradually; as, extravagance decreases one's means.
• (v.) A becoming less; gradual diminution; decay; as, a decrease of revenue or of strength.
• (n.) To grow less, -- opposed to increase; to be diminished gradually, in size, degree, number, duration, etc. or in strength, quality or excellence; as, they days decrease in length from June to December.
• (v.) The wane of the moon.

verb

• Crowd or pack to capacity.
  • usage: "the theater was jampacked"
  • synonyms: jam, jampack, ram, chock up, wad
• Put something somewhere so that the space is completely filled.
  • usage: "cram books into the suitcase"
• Study intensively, as before an exam.
  • usage: "I had to bone up on my Latin verbs before the final exam"
  • synonyms: grind away, drum, bone up, swot, get up, mug up, swot up, bone
• Prepare (students) hastily for an impending exam. .

• (v.i.) To eat greedily, and to satiety; to stuff.
• (n.) The act of cramming.
• (v.i.) To make crude preparation for a special occasion, as an examination, by a hasty and extensive course of memorizing or study.
• (v.t.) To press, force or drive, particularly in filling or in thrusting one thing into another; to stuff; to crowd; to fill to superfluity; as, to cram anything into a basket; to cram a room with people.
• (v.t.) To fill with food to satiety; to stuff.
• (n.) Information hastily memorized; as, a cram from an examination.
• (n.) A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed.
• (v.t.) To put hastily through an extensive course of memorizing or study, as in preparation for an examination; as, a pupil is crammed by his tutor.