as in shaving
to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument
snipped the loose ends
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Recent Examples of snipping
Heckel crowed with delight as Strong tried paper, snipping her classmate’s fingers with scissors to complete the sweep.
—
Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 2026
Cut individual stems as needed, snipping above a leaf node to encourage continued growth.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 18 Jan. 2026
Prune it by snipping off the dead stems in spring.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 Dec. 2025
The nightingale tossed the worm in the air, snipping it in two with her beak and crushing its gummy, writhing halves against a flat rock.
—Hazlitt, 19 Nov. 2025
In the video, Sweeney goes from dirty blonde, with Oropeza methodically snipping the ends of her chin-length hair, to an icy, bright blonde.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 27 Oct. 2025
White House aides are snipping at Republican colleagues on the Hill that this is on them to sort out.
—Phil Elliott, Time, 8 Oct. 2025
An artist and aspiring beautician From the age of three, Traelynn was painting and snipping her own hair, sparking her love for cosmotology, her mother said.
—Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2025
Ruiz Avalos, 28, started snipping away but kept a close eye on her customer.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 2 Aug. 2025
Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 16 Mar. 2026
Cut individual stems as needed, snipping above a leaf node to encourage continued growth.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 18 Jan. 2026
Prune it by snipping off the dead stems in spring.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 Dec. 2025
The nightingale tossed the worm in the air, snipping it in two with her beak and crushing its gummy, writhing halves against a flat rock.
—Hazlitt, 19 Nov. 2025
In the video, Sweeney goes from dirty blonde, with Oropeza methodically snipping the ends of her chin-length hair, to an icy, bright blonde.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 27 Oct. 2025
White House aides are snipping at Republican colleagues on the Hill that this is on them to sort out.
—Phil Elliott, Time, 8 Oct. 2025
An artist and aspiring beautician From the age of three, Traelynn was painting and snipping her own hair, sparking her love for cosmotology, her mother said.
—Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2025
Ruiz Avalos, 28, started snipping away but kept a close eye on her customer.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 2 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for snipping
Verb
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That's because these plug-in or balcony solar panels start shaving off part of a homeowner's or renter's utility bill right away.—
Jeff Brady,
NPR,
12 Mar. 2026
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Jalen Smith, one of the men alleged to have helped perpetrate a sprawling college basketball point-shaving scheme, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to charges stemming from a Department of Justice indictment that unspooled the gambling ring.—
Mike Vorkunov,
New York Times,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Pfeiffer opened the scoring in the eighth minute, cutting across from the right wing and beating Denver keeper Abby Smith with her left foot.—
Harold Gutmann,
Mercury News,
15 Mar. 2026
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The recently recovered Celtics star drew a shooting foul, fed Queta for a cutting dunk and sank a 3-pointer on consecutive Celtics possessions, then pulled up for an 18-footer a minute later.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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With 52 seconds left, Northfield junior Paris Taylor swooped in for an offensive rebound and a put-back, trimming the Falcons’ lead to 49-47.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
14 Mar. 2026
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The Bee Cave City Council on Tuesday approved changes to the city’s tree trimming ordinance that would allow owners to trim trees on their property without a permit.—
Naina Srivastava,
Austin American Statesman,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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If the digital nouveau riche have sufficient discretionary income to unseat the coupon-clipping linear-TV gang, all that outsized buying power may not necessarily translate to a full-on tech takeover.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
18 Mar. 2026
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In a video posted to social media, the country star was caught off guard while performing at Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne, Australia, when a phone was suddenly thrown from the crowd, clipping the musician in the ear.—
Christina Dugan Ramirez,
FOXNews.com,
16 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Snipping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/snipping. Accessed 21 Mar. 2026.
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