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"These straightforward but surprisingly dangerous charms cause certain things to swell or shrink. You will be learning both charms together, so that you can always undo an over-enthusiastic cast. There is thus no excuse for having accidentally shrunk your homework down to microscopic size or for allowing a giant toad to rampage through your school’s flower gardens."
Miranda Goshawk[src]

The Shrinking Charm[2] (Reducio)[1] was a charm that caused an object to shrink.[2] It was the counter-charm to the Engorgement Charm, causing enlarged objects to return to their original size.[1] The Shrinking Charm was also used as the potion-making spell for the Shrinking Solution.[3]

The use of a Shrinking Charm on a human was considered both complicated and dangerous.[4]

History[]

During the 1985–1986 school year, the Shrinking Charm was covered in second-year Charms classes at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by Professor Flitwick.[4]

Known practitioners and uses[]

Caster(s) Date Notes
Jacob's sibling 1985–1986 school year Jacob's sibling used an Engorgement Charm alongside the Shrinking Charm to sneak into another House common room.[5]
1986–1987 school year Used the charm to shrink themselves inside Argus Filch's office to hide when he arrived with Mrs Norris, so they could prank him and retrieve Jacob's notebooks.[6]
Arthur Weasley August 1994 Arthur Weasley used this charm to shrink the size of Dudley Dursley's swelled tongue after Fred Weasley purposefully gave him a Ton-Tongue Toffee, at 4 Privet Drive.[7]
Bartemius Crouch Junior September 1994 Whilst impersonating Alastor Moody, after having enlarged a spider with the Engorgement Charm, used this to return it to its normal size, during a fourth year Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson.[1]
Poppy Pomfrey October 1994 When Hermione Granger was hexed by Draco Malfoy, her front teeth grew huge. Madame Pomfrey shrunk her teeth with this spell. Hermione used this occasion to avoid having braces because her teeth were originally larger than normal teeth and caused her to be compared to a chipmunk by other students.[8]
Harry Potter 27 December, 1997 Harry, who had enlarged a spider with an Engorgement Charm with another's wand, tried to use this to return it to its normal size, but it didn't work. Later, he used it after he enlarged a lamp fire after he got another wand.[9]
Lottie Turner 2009–2010 school year Used it to shrink a portrait of Harold that she had duplicated with the Doubling Charm.[10]

Known practitioners[]

Etymology[]

The incantation is a Latin word meaning "to reduce" or "is reducable", fitting for this spell's effects.[11]

Behind the scenes[]

See also[]

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 14 (The Unforgivable Curses)
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Wonderbook: Book of Spells
  3. Wonderbook: Book of Potions
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 2, Chapter 2 (Growing and Shrinking) - Charms Lesson "Reducio"
  5. 5.0 5.1 Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 2, Chapter 2 (Growing and Shrinking)
  6. 6.0 6.1 Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 3, Chapter 4 (Filching from Filch)
  7. 7.0 7.1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 4 (Back to The Burrow)
  8. 8.0 8.1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 18 (The Weighing of the Wands)
  9. 9.0 9.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20 (Xenophilius Lovegood)
  10. 10.0 10.1 Harry Potter: Magic Awakened, Year 2
  11. See this translation, courtesy of Google Translate
Charms (class)
PS Wingardium Leviosa feather
Charm-book writers and developers
Blagdon Blay · Daisy Pennifold · Delfina Crimp · Miranda Goshawk · Jarleth Hobart · Basil Horton · Helixa Hyslop · Syna Hyslop · Randolph Keitch · Levina Monkstanley · Orabella Nuttley · Mnemone Radford · Scarpin · Elliot Smethwyck · Felix Summerbee · Violeta Stitch
Professors Fortinbras · Filius Flitwick · Abraham Ronen · Unidentified male professor · Unidentified medieval professor
Textbooks Achievements in Charming · Extreme Incantations · Quintessence: A Quest · The Standard Book of Spells
Charms studied at Hogwarts
Anti-Alohomora Charm · Ascension Charm (Ascendio) · Banishing Charm (Depulso) · Blackboard Writing Spell · Blue sparks · Bombardment Spell (Bombarda) · Box Blasting Charm (Cistem Aperio) · Bubble-Head Charm · Cheering Charm · Cleaning Charm · Colour Change Charm (Colovaria) · Confundus Charm (Confundo) · Counter-charm for hiccoughs · Dancing Feet Spell (Tarantallegra) · Descendo · Disarming Charm (Expelliarmus) · Disillusionment Charm · Drought Charm · Entrancing Enchantments (theoretically) · Eradication Spell (Deletrius) · Engorgement Charm (Engorgio) · Extinguishing Spell · Fire-Making Spell (Incendio) · Freezing Charm (Immobulus) · Freezing Spell (Glacius) · Full Body-Bind Curse (Petrificus Totalus) · General Counter-Spell (Finite Incantatem) · Gouging Spell (Defodio) · Growth Charm · Ice Jinx · Impervius Charm (Impervius) · Knitting Charm · Knockback Jinx (Flipendo) · Leg-Locker Curse (Locomotor Mortis) · Levitation Charm (Wingardium Leviosa) · Locking Spell (Colloportus) · Locomotion Charm (Locomotor) · Lumos Solem Spell (Lumos Solem) · Mending Charm (Reparo) · Memory Charm (Obliviate) · Muffliato Charm (Muffliato) · Nonverbal spells · Pack Charm (Pack) · Red Sparks (Vermillious) · Reductor Curse (Reducto) · Scouring Charm (Scourgify) · Seize and pull charm (Carpe Retractum) · Severing Charm (Diffindo) · Shrinking Charm (Reducio) · Silencing Charm (Silencio) · Slowing Charm (Arresto Momentum) · Skurge Charm (Skurge) · Softening Charm (Spongify) · Spell for growing legs · Substantive Charm · Summoning Charm (Accio) · Tickling Charm (Rictusempra) · Unlocking Charm (Alohomora) · Vinegar to wine spell · Wand-Extinguishing Charm (Nox) · Wand-Lighting Charm (Lumos) · Lumos Maxima · Water-Making Spell (Aguamenti)
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