To undersell our rivals . . . has led the manufacturer to . . . attenuate his processes, in the allotment of tasks, to an extreme point.
I. Taylor.
We may reject and reject till we attenuate history into sapless meagerness.
Sir F. Palgrave.
At*ten"u*ate, v. i. To become thin, slender, or fine; to grow less; to lessen.
The attention attenuates as its sphere contracts.
Coleridge.
{ At*ten"u*ate (&?;), At*ten"u*a`ted (&?;), } a. [L. attenuatus, p. p.] 1. Made thin or slender.