reduce >> /rəˈd(j)us/
Definition: [transitive verb] Make smaller or less in amount, degree, or size.
Example: the need for businesses to reduce costs
Definition: [transitive verb] Bring someone or something to (a lower or weaker state, condition, or role)
Example: she has been reduced to near poverty
Definition: [transitive verb] Change a substance to (a different or more basic form)
Example: it is difficult to understand how lava could have been reduced to dust
Definition: [transitive verb] Cause to combine chemically with hydrogen.
Definition: [transitive verb] Restore (a dislocated part) to its proper position by manipulation or surgery.
Example: Joe's reducing a dislocated thumb
Definition: [transitive verb] Besiege and capture (a town or fortress).
Example: Fortresses were redesigned to take advantage of the defensive potential of modern firearms and techniques for besieging and reducing fortresses were refined.