Contract
Etymology
From Latin “contractus,” the past participle of “contrahere” — literally “to draw together” — from “com-” (together) and “trahere” (to draw or pull, also the root of “tractor” and “attract”). The physical image of two parties pulled into a single knot survives in the modern legal sense.
noun · /KON-trakt/
A legally enforceable agreement in which each side promises something in exchange for what the other promises.
What it names
The handle for the moment a promise stops being a favor and becomes something a court will make you keep — reach for it when you want to know whether a deal actually binds.
Example
The freelancer learned the hard way that a verbal handshake can still be a contract, but proving its terms is another matter.
Related idea
A contract is the whole binding agreement; a warranty is one specific promise inside it — a guarantee that some fact is true or some standard will be met.
verb · /kun-TRAKT/
To become smaller, shorter, or tighter; to shrink.
What it names
what a muscle does when it tenses, or metal as it cools.
Example
Pupils contract in bright light.
Related idea
The opposite of expanding — the squeezing at the heart of compression.
verb · /kun-TRAKT/
To catch or come down with a disease.
What it names
the moment of becoming infected.
Example
He contracted malaria while traveling.
Related idea
As with a legal contract, one “takes on” something binding — here, an illness.