as in cut
to cause to diminish gradually by or as if by cutting off bits with a knife
He was sitting on the porch, whittling a stick.
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Recent Examples of whittled
The European Union, once a top Kremlin customer, has banned all seaborne imports of Russian crude oil, and whittled Moscow’s share of its natural gas imports delivered via pipeline to about 11% last year, from more than 40% in 2021.
—
Anna Cooban, CNN Money, 15 Aug. 2025
After ten weeks and 550 matches, the sixteen teams of the Premier League of MLP have been whittled to ten, the six Challenger teams are in Southern California, and the playoff schedules are out.
—Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Anna Cooban, CNN Money, 15 Aug. 2025
After ten weeks and 550 matches, the sixteen teams of the Premier League of MLP have been whittled to ten, the six Challenger teams are in Southern California, and the playoff schedules are out.
—Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whittled
Verb
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Initially lined up outside, Chiefs defensive end Chris Jones quickly cut inside to beat the right tackle.—
Pete Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
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On the northeast of the fire, by Sugar Pine Mountain, crews worked in steep, inaccessible terrain to bring containment lines into the natural rock bluff, trying to cut the fire off south of the Wishon Reservoir for the protection of the critical hydroelectric infrastructure.—
CA WILDFIRE BOT,
Sacbee.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The video quickly clipped to the white sedan engulfed in flames.—
Paulina Dedaj,
FOXNews.com,
2 Sep. 2025
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In contrast, other states with stricter regimes may have their wings clipped.—
Owen Tedford,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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It was lowered all the way to the ground with its custom air ride suspension.—
Keenan Thompson,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
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In the main building, accessible rooms include a King and Double with wide bedroom and bathroom doors for wheelchair access, lowered emergency evacuation instructions, and grab bars in the bathrooms.—
Patricia Doherty,
Travel + Leisure,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That dropped to just two teens in that age group in 2024.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
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And so this was a gift that dropped into my lap.—
Carson Blackwelder,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Once its largest shareholder with a 40% stake, Lefkofsky stepped down from an active leadership role at Groupon in 2015 and has since pared his holdings to just under 10%.—
Robert Channick,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Sep. 2025
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Stocks were lower Friday morning but pared some losses after the data release.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
29 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whittled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whittled. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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