paring

noun par·ing \ ˈper-iŋ \

Definition of paring

1 : the act of cutting away an edge or surface

2 : something pared off

apple parings

Recent Examples of paring from the Web

Use a sharp paring knife to scrape off any barnacles or dirt on the shells, and check for beards.

— rochelle bilow, Bon Appetit, "How to Cook Mussels Like Some Kind of Professional Mussel-Cooker," 9 Apr. 2018
The Pentium Gold chips have a particular appeal for budget gaming builds, as the paring of a $64 dual-core CPU with Hyper-Threading with a $90 GPU still yields decent gaming capability.

— gordon mah ung, PCWorld, "Budget gamers: You can get some Intel Coffee Lake chips for as little as $42," 4 Apr. 2018
With sharp paring knife, cut off tops and bottoms of oranges, then cut off peel,.

— the good housekeeping test kitchen, Good Housekeeping, "Pineapple-Pom Fruit Melange," 3 Dec. 2015
In an odd-couple paring, that pact and other trade agreements have been opposed both by labor and President Donald Trump.

— michael smolens, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Rep. Scott Peters missing from election heat. That's no accident," 16 Mar. 2018
Shape: Using a 3-inch round cookie cutter (or sharp paring knife) remove the center portion from the yellow, green, and blue cakes.

— debbi snook, cleveland.com, "St. Patrick's Day Leprechaun Hat Cake (photo, recipe)," 13 Mar. 2018
But a sharp paring knife and eye for detail will work well here too.

— lilah ramzi, Vogue, "A Year of Pie: In Her New Taartwork Cookbook, Brittany Bennett Shares Recipes for Each Season," 6 Mar. 2018
Peel quarters with a sharp paring knife, then halve them crosswise. Slice into 1/2-in.-thick pieces (about the same size as orange sections).

— Sunset, "Hibiscus Citrus Papaya Salad," 22 Jan. 2018
Of course, a sharp paring knife or vegetable peeled can be used to create wide strips that can be finely minced.

— darlene zimmerman, Detroit Free Press, "Healthy Table: Orange zest brightens up crumb cake," 20 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'paring.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of paring

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Learn More about paring

See words that rhyme with paring Nglish: Translation of paring for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of paring for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up paring? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

paring

Definition of paring

Recent Examples of paring from the Web

First Known Use of paring

Learn More about paring

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

exigent

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

Putting 'Myself' Where 'Me' or 'I' Usually Goes

A Deep Dive on 'Deep Dive'

10 Words for the Elitists in Your Life

The Good, The Bad, & The Semantically Imprecise - 8/17/2018

Ask the Editors

Ghost Word

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Literally

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

Word Games

Difficult Spelling Words Quiz

The Eponym Quiz

True or False?

Word Winder's CrossWinder

Trending: Manafort Guilty on 8 Charges, 'Mistrial' on Others

Putting 'Myself' Where 'Me' or 'I' Usually Goes

10 Words for the Elitists in Your Life

Difficult Spelling Words Quiz

Ghost Word

paring

Definition of paring

Recent Examples of paring from the Web

First Known Use of paring

Learn More about paring

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Trending: Manafort Guilty on 8 Charges, 'Mistrial' on Others

Putting 'Myself' Where 'Me' or 'I' Usually Goes

10 Words for the Elitists in Your Life

Difficult Spelling Words Quiz

Ghost Word