shrink

Etymology

From Middle English schrynken, from Old English sċrincan, from Proto-Germanic *skrinkwaną. Cognate with Dutch schrinken (“to shrink”). The sense “psychologist, psychotherapist” is a clipping of head-shrinker.

verb

1. (transitive) To cause to become smaller.
   The dryer shrank my sweater.
   The bottom line is this: To shrink your gut, you need to start listening to it. 2008 October, David Schipper, “Outsmart your stomach: Seven ways to fill your gut—and lose it, too”, in Men's Health, volume 23, number 8, →ISSN, page 135
2. (intransitive) To become smaller; to contract.
   This garment will shrink when wet.
   Since 1982, it has shrunk by 250 meters. File:Since 1982, it has shrunk by 250 meters.ogg 2018, VOA Learning English > China's Melting Glacier Brings Visitors, Adds to Climate Concerns
   When they took over the 1000 'Flying Scotsman' from May 1979, the journey from London to Edinburgh shrank to just 4hrs 37mins - including a stop at Newcastle. October 6 2021, Greg Morse, “A need for speed and the drive for 125”, in RAIL, number 941, page 52
3. (intransitive) To cower or flinch.
   Molly shrank away from the blows of the whip.
4. (transitive) To draw back; to withdraw.
5. (intransitive, figurative) To withdraw or retire, as from danger.
   They assisted us against the Thebans when you shrank from the task. 1881, Benjamin Jowett, transl., Thucydides
6. (intransitive) To move back or away, especially because of fear or disgust.

noun

1. Shrinkage; contraction; recoil.
   Yet almost with, with sudden shrink, That I had less to praise. 1818, Leigh Hunt, “To T** L** H**, Six Years Old, During a Sickness.”, in Foliage;[…], London: Printed for C. and J. Ollier, Welbeck Street, page xlvii
2. (slang, sometimes derogatory) A psychiatrist or psychotherapist.
   Coordinate term: shrinkette
   You need to see a shrink, you crazy fool.
   My shrink said that he was an enabler, bad for me.
   I went to a shrink to analyze my dreams / She says it's lack of sex that's bringing me down 1994 August, Green Day (lyrics and music), “Basket Case” (track 7), in Dookie, Reprise Records
   "From behind the counter of this provincial train station coffee shop, Joanna was barista and unofficial shrink to wildly varied London-bound travellers," writes author Laline Paull. Confessions of a Barista on Platform 1 was published on February 9 by The Firle Press …. March 10 2021, “Stop & Examine”, in RAIL, number 926, page 70
3. (uncountable, business) Loss of inventory, for example due to shoplifting or not selling items before their expiration date.
   Assuming the retailer's shrink is average or below, and the owner is comfortable with the level of shrink, perhaps nothing more need be done except to maintain vigilance and to monitor the shrink for signs of emerging problems. 2011, Charles Sennewald, John Christman, Retail Crime, Security, and Loss Prevention: An Encyclopedic Reference, page 227