pruned 1 of 2

pruned

2 of 2

verb

past tense of prune
as in shaved
to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument pruned the dead branches from the old apple tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pruned
Adjective
Never leave pruned plant debris lying around the base of the tomato. Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 28 Feb. 2026
Verb
Climbing Roses Climbing roses should not be pruned in the fall except to remove broken branches. Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 10 Sep. 2026 Small plantings can be pruned back by hand with pruners, while larger beds can be tackled by mowing the plants down with your lawnmower deck set on the highest setting. Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Sep. 2026 They can be pruned as early as fall and as late as spring before new growth starts. Heather Bien, The Spruce, 17 Aug. 2026 Beyond this zone, vegetation should be pruned, thinned and adequately spaced to avoid flames easily spreading. John Abatzoglou, The Conversation, 3 Aug. 2026 Airlines pruned schedules this year, which can mean fewer flights per day or week on a certain route. Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 2 Aug. 2026 Everbearing varieties can be pruned for either a single fall crop or two harvests. Rachel Silva, Martha Stewart, 27 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pruned
Adjective
  • The seat is the sail, trimmed and re-trimmed as the wind changes.
    Rob Green, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The fix is usually a trimmed hedge and a simple letter.
    Gary Singer, Sun Sentinel, 25 June 2026
Verb
  • People with very hairy chests might need enough hair shaved off to allow the pad to stick.
    Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Even in southern locations, more than 40 minutes is expected to be shaved off daytime, according to AccuWeather.
    Doyle Rice, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Lopez tossed a 17-yard touchdown pass to Carlos Hernandez to cut Miami’s lead to 11 points.
    Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The decline raises the prospect of an interest rate cut by the central bank at next week’s monetary policy committee meeting, the penultimate one for this year.
    Alexander Onukwue, semafor.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • His short-form video content and public appearances produced a plethora of footage that could easily be clipped, repurposed and remixed, into preexisting memes and trending audios.
    Rachel Hale, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Majumdar recalls how a screen in the machine would cycle through four 10-minute videos of the staple from the 90’s and early 2000’s, each made up of several different scenes clipped together.
    Mack DeGeurin, Popular Science, 9 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Pruned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pruned. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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