foreshorten
"foreshorten" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“foreshorten” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To render the image of an object such that it appears to be receding in space as it is perceived visually.
Corpus desk
Index EN-foreshorten · foreshorten · English
foreshorten · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "F" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | foreshorten |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “foreshorten” in English
Rare enough to double-check
foreshorten is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
Zero misspellings are on record for foreshorten in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From fore- + shorten. The correct English form is foreshorten, spelled F-O-R-E-S-H-O-R-T-E-N.
Definition
- 1To render the image of an object such that it appears to be receding in space as it is perceived visually.
- 2To abridge, reduce, contract.
- 3To make shorter.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how foreshorten appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
When the church was demolished it was decided to preserve the chancel, partly for its Montagu monuments and partly to avoid disturbing the remains of the many members of the family who lie in the vaults beneath. The result is a foreshortened building of considerable charm, almost as broad as it is long and with great high windows.
The Californian duo looked and sounded like the kind of band you would have seen being excitedly introduced on The Old Grey Whistle Test in early 1976, only to find their career suddenly foreshortened by the arrival of punk
Etymology
From fore- + shorten.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.