reduce

1、reduce 的命门是 -duc-（拉）。把这个"拉"字家系一次记全：duct（导管）、educate（引出→教育）、introduce（引进）、produce（生产）、deduce（推论，义为"往回拉出结论"），全是这一家。
2、re- 是"往回"，往回拉就是往少里拉，于是 reduce=减少、降低；名词 reduction。拼写陷阱：去 e 加 tion，不是 reduceion。
3、和 decrease（减少，多指自然下降）、decline（下降、谢绝）分工：reduce 强调人为动手降下来，reduce speed / reduce cost 都是"由人去压"。

reduce 减少，缩小，简化

re-,向后，往回，-duc,拉，词源同 deduce,deduct.即拉回，引申词义减少，缩小。

reduce

reduce: [14] ‘Lessen, diminish’ is a comparatively recent semantic development for reduce. Its Latin ancestor was certainly not used in that sense. This was redūcere, a compound verb formed from the prefix re- ‘back, again’ and dūcere ‘lead, bring’ (source of English duct, duke, educate, etc). It meant literally ‘bring back’, hence ‘restore’ and also ‘withdraw’.

The original ‘bring back’ made the journey to English, and even survived into the early 17th century (‘reducing often to my memory the conceit of that Roman stoic’, Sir Henry Wotton, Elements of Architecture 1624). The sense ‘lessen, diminish’ seems to be the result of a semantic progression from ‘bring back to a particular condition’ via ‘bring back to order’ and ‘bring to subjection’.
=> duct, duke, educate, introduce, produce, redoubt

reduce (v.)

late 14c., "bring back," from Old French reducer (14c.), from Latin reducere "lead back, bring back," figuratively "restore, replace," from re- "back" (see re-) + ducere "bring, lead" (see duke (n.)). Meaning "bring to an inferior condition" is 1570s; that of "bring to a lower rank" is 1640s (military reduce to ranks is from 1802); that of "subdue by force of arms" is 1610s. Sense of "to lower, diminish, lessen" is from 1787. Related: Reduced; reducing.

1. The job losses will reduce the total workforce to 7,000.

职位减少后，在职工人总数将减至7,000人。

2. He finally corrected his misstatement and offered to reduce the fee.

他终于纠正了自己的错误说法，提出要减少费用。

3. The plan is designed to reduce some of the company's mountainous debt.

该计划旨在减少公司堆积如山的债务。

4. The agency should reduce turnaround time by 11 per cent.

该代理机构应削减11%的周转时间。

5. They believed that controlling the money supply would reduce inflation.

他们相信控制货币供应量会减少通货膨胀。

【diminish, dwindle, lessen, decrease, reduce】
这组词都有“减少，变少”的意思，其区别是：
diminish: 侧重大小数量和重要性的不断减小，强调减小的部分。
dwindle: 与decrease同义，指逐渐减小，但强调变得越来越少终至全无。
lessen: 普通用词，与decrease近义。指数目、程度、价值、实力等的减少。
decrease: 指逐渐地、不断地减少。
reduce: 普通用词，含义广。指数量、程度的降低或减少。

【induce, deduce, reduce】
这是一组形近易混词。
induce: v.引诱，劝；引起，导致。
• We couldn't induce the old lady to travel by air. 我们无法劝说那位老太太坐飞机去。
deduce: v.推断，推理，演绎。
• My friend becomes quiet when his girlfriend is angry with him; today he is quiet and so I deduce she is angry. 我的朋友在他的女朋友生他的气的时候就会变得沉默，今天他很沉默，所以我推断她生气了。
reduce: v.减轻，减小；降低。
• He reduced his weight by 20 pounds by eating less and exercising. 他通过节食和运动，体重减轻了20磅。

【diminish, decline, alleviate, decrease, reduce】
这组词都有“减少，减轻”的意思，其区别是：
diminish: v.指因为不断消耗，在数量方面缓慢减少，也指在素质或者价值的下降。
• The supply of oil has diminished because of the war. 由于战争石油的供应减少了。
decline: v. (数目、价格、比率)下降；谢绝，婉言推辞；衰退，衰落。
• Last year, the crime rate in Chicago has sharply declined. 去年芝加哥的犯罪率明显下降。
• He declined our invitation to dinner. 他婉拒了我们请他吃饭的邀请。
alleviate: v.在痛苦方面的减轻，缓和
• The painkiller alleviated the pain. 止疼药减缓了疼痛。
decrease: v.指数量上的减少；力量或者强度的减弱。
• The population decreased a lot last year. 去年人口数量急剧下降。
reduce: v.指人为地使某物在数量或重量方面的减少或降低。
• He reduced the amount of money they could spend. 他缩减了他们的开销。