Text Truncate API: The Complete Guide

Need to truncate text to a specific length? This guide covers everything you need to know about text truncation via API, including word-boundary awareness, ellipsis options, and best practices.

What is Text Truncation?

Text truncation shortens a string to a specified length, typically adding an indicator (like "...") to show content was removed. Smart truncation cuts at word boundaries rather than mid-word for better readability.

Example: "This is a long sentence" truncated to 15 chars becomes "This is a..."

Truncation Options

Different truncation strategies for different needs:

• Character-based: Cut at exact character count
• Word-based: Cut at word boundaries
• Sentence-based: Cut at sentence boundaries
• Custom suffix: Use "..." or "[...]" or custom text

Using the Text Truncate API

TinyFn provides a simple endpoint to truncate text:

POST https://api.tinyfn.io/v1/text/truncate
Headers: X-API-Key: your-api-key
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "text": "This is a very long sentence that needs to be truncated.",
  "max_length": 30,
  "word_boundary": true
}

{
  "original": "This is a very long sentence that needs to be truncated.",
  "truncated": "This is a very long...",
  "was_truncated": true,
  "original_length": 56,
  "truncated_length": 22
}

Parameters

Code Examples

JavaScript / Node.js

const response = await fetch(
  'https://api.tinyfn.io/v1/text/truncate',
  {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'X-API-Key': 'your-api-key',
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      text: 'This is a very long sentence that needs to be truncated.',
      max_length: 30,
      word_boundary: true
    })
  }
);
const result = await response.json();
console.log(result.truncated); // "This is a very long..."

Python

import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://api.tinyfn.io/v1/text/truncate',
    headers={'X-API-Key': 'your-api-key'},
    json={
        'text': 'This is a very long sentence that needs to be truncated.',
        'max_length': 30,
        'word_boundary': True
    }
)
result = response.json()
print(result['truncated'])  # "This is a very long..."

cURL

curl -X POST "https://api.tinyfn.io/v1/text/truncate" \
  -H "X-API-Key: your-api-key" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"text": "This is a very long sentence.", "max_length": 20}'

Common Use Cases

• Preview Text: Show article excerpts in listings
• Meta Descriptions: Truncate to SEO character limits
• UI Components: Fit text in fixed-width elements
• Notifications: Shorten messages for push notifications
• Social Sharing: Prepare text for character-limited platforms

Best Practices

1. Use word boundaries: Don't cut words in the middle
2. Account for suffix: Include "..." length in max_length
3. Consider mobile: Different lengths for different viewports
4. Preserve meaning: Ensure truncated text makes sense

Use via MCP

Your AI agent can call this tool directly via Model Context Protocol — no HTTP code needed. Add TinyFn to Claude Desktop, Cursor, or any MCP client:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tinyfn-text": {
      "url": "https://api.tinyfn.io/mcp/text/",
      "headers": {
        "X-API-Key": "your-api-key"
      }
    }
  }
}

See all text analysis tools available via MCP in our Text Analysis MCP Tools for AI Agents guide.