winnow

verb win·now \ ˈwi-(ˌ)nō \

|Updated on: 7 Aug 2018

Examples: winnow in a Sentence

Editor's Note: winnow Has Old English Roots

Definition of winnow

winnowed; winnowing; winnows

transitive verb

1 a (1) : to remove (something, such as chaff) by a current of air

(2) : to get rid of (something undesirable or unwanted) : remove —often used with out

winnow out certain inaccuracies
—Stanley Walker

b (1) : separate, sift

an old hand at winnowing what is true and significant
—Oscar Lewis

(2) : select

2 a : to treat (something, such as grain) by exposure to a current of air so that waste matter is eliminated

b : to free of unwanted or inferior elements : pare

c : narrow, reduce

winnowed the field to four contenders

3 : to blow on : fan

the wind winnowing his thin white hair
—Time

intransitive verb

1 : to separate chaff from grain by fanning

2 : to separate desirable and undesirable elements

—

winnower

play \ˈwi-nə-wər\ noun

See winnow defined for English-language learners

See winnow defined for kids

winnow was our Word of the Day on 03/27/2016. Hear the podcast!

Examples of winnow in a Sentence

The least qualified applicants were winnowed out of the initial pool.
Harvesters winnowed the chaff from the wheat.

Recent Examples of winnow from the Web

People close to the search process have said that Mr. Trump has winnowed the field to three finalists: appeals court judges Brett Kavanaugh of Maryland, Raymond Kethledge of Michigan and Amy Coney Barrett of Indiana.

— peter nicholas, WSJ, "Trump Has Finalists for Supreme Court Pick," 5 July 2018
Luhnow had already winnowed his list of candidates to two free agents.

— ben reiter, SI.com, "Why Carlos Beltrán Was the Perfect Addition to Aid the Astros' Journey to the World Series," 9 July 2018
Producers — who include Cruise, Jerry Bruckheimer and Skydance’s David Ellison — have been testing actors for several weeks, winnowing the list down to Hoult, Powell and Teller.

— borys kit, The Hollywood Reporter, "Nicholas Hoult, Glen Powell and Miles Teller Frontrunners for Big 'Top Gun 2' Role (Exclusive)," 27 June 2018
Iowa’s precinct caucuses in February open the presidential primary season, winnowing candidates, signaling donors where to place bets and educating voters who might have paid scant attention to possibilities in a new election season.

— bill lambrecht, Houston Chronicle, "Julian Castro cancels trip to presidential caucus state to protest border crisis," 20 June 2018
After four rounds of voting, the 16-player field has winnowed to one.

— the editors of gq, GQ, "LeBron James Is the Most Stylish Man in the NBA," 8 June 2018
If sedans winnow almost completely before autonomy hits — which seems totally possible given the breakneck pace that car companies around the world are adopting more SUVs and / or trucks — then won’t that assumption be wrong?

— sean o'kane, The Verge, "This new electric concept is a futuristic take on old-school racecars," 29 Apr. 2018
Hundreds of years of trapping and hunting red wolves in the Eastern U.S. winnowed them down until they were declared extinct in the wild in 1980.

— robbie george, National Geographic, "Rule to Allow Hunting Could Doom Rare Red Wolves," 29 June 2018
New York’s Engineered Garments and San Francisco designer Evan Kinori elected for elimination: Their distinctive Mao-collars winnow the pointed collar down to a mere band of fabric.

— jacob gallagher, WSJ, "When It’s Super-Hot, This is Your Workwear Solution," 21 June 2018

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

winnow Has Old English Roots

Beginning as windwian in Old English, winnow first referred to the removal of chaff from grain by a current of air. This use was soon extended to describe the removal of anything undesirable or unwanted (a current example of this sense would be "winnowing out outdated information"). People then began using the word for the selection of the most desirable elements (as in "winnowing out the true statements from the lies"). The association of winnow with the movement of air led to the meaning "to beat with or as if with wings," but that use is rare enough that it is found only in Merriam-Webster Unabridged. The word's last meaning ("to blow on or fan") blew in at the turn of the 19th century.

Origin and Etymology of winnow

Middle English winewen, from Old English windwian to fan, winnow; akin to Old High German wintōn to fan, Latin vannus winnowing fan, ventus wind — more at wind

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a(1)

See Words from the same year

winnow

noun

Definition of winnow

1 : a device for winnowing

2 a : the action of winnowing

b : a motion resembling that of winnowing

Recent Examples of winnow from the Web

That amount of freedom kind of winnows and expands throughout the piece.

— seth colter walls, New York Times, "A Long-Lost Score, Rebuilt With the Help of a Photo," 19 Jan. 2018
And by splintering the vote in Ohio and Florida, Mr. Cruz also risks handing Mr. Trump advantages in momentum and delegates that could be unstoppable, no matter how much the field winnows.

— jonathan martin, New York Times, "Democratic Debate: Analysis," 5 Mar. 2016

First Known Use of winnow

1580

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

Other Agriculture/Gardening Terms

fallow, graft, heirloom, loam, potash, soilage, swath, tilth, windfall

WINNOW Defined for English Language Learners

winnow

verb

Definition of winnow for English Language Learners

: to remove (people or things that are less important, desirable, etc.) from a larger group or list : to make (a list of possible choices) smaller by removing the less desirable choices
: to remove (the unwanted coverings of seeds) from grain by throwing the grain up in the air and letting the wind blow the unwanted parts away