fat such as butter or lard used in baked goods
"Adding a little vegetable shortening to the recipe helped keep the cookies flaky and tender."
Fat that is solid at room temperature, such as margarine or lard (not usually used of butter), used to make shortcrust pastry.
"She reached for the tub of vegetable shortening to ensure her pie crust would stay flaky and tender."
present participle of shorten
"The rain was shortening our walk home by forcing us to run faster than usual."