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
But the 30 or so deaths earlier this year due to bird flu has whittled the number of swans down to about 44, a city official said.
—
Ryan Gillespie, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 May 2026
His work as an accountant had spared him the sun marks and whittled skin that Mother carried.
—Literary Hub, 24 Apr. 2026
Dayton whittled the deficit to 10 early in the second half, but Belle buried a 3-pointer and Hill hit a pull-up jumper for a 48-33 lead with 15 minutes remaining.
—ABC News, 15 Mar. 2026
The Tigers whittled one of those UK leads down to five points with just over 10 minutes left.
—Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
After trailing 75-50 in the third quarter, the Spurs whittled the margin to 11 points by the end of the period and opened the fourth with an 18-5 run to take their first lead since the opening minutes.
—Oc Register, 7 Mar. 2026
On fourth-and-3 from the Washington 8 in the third quarter, rather than take a field goal that would’ve whittled Washington’s lead to 29-21.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2026
Cocurators Marcela Guerrero and Drew Sawyer drew up a list of well over 400 creatives, made studio visits to upwards of 300, and whittled the tally down to 56 individuals, duos, and collectives.
—Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 28 Feb. 2026
Earlier this month, the department whittled the list down to 30 finalists.
—Anthony Bettin, CBS News, 24 Feb. 2026
Ryan Gillespie, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 May 2026
His work as an accountant had spared him the sun marks and whittled skin that Mother carried.
—Literary Hub, 24 Apr. 2026
Dayton whittled the deficit to 10 early in the second half, but Belle buried a 3-pointer and Hill hit a pull-up jumper for a 48-33 lead with 15 minutes remaining.
—ABC News, 15 Mar. 2026
The Tigers whittled one of those UK leads down to five points with just over 10 minutes left.
—Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
After trailing 75-50 in the third quarter, the Spurs whittled the margin to 11 points by the end of the period and opened the fourth with an 18-5 run to take their first lead since the opening minutes.
—Oc Register, 7 Mar. 2026
On fourth-and-3 from the Washington 8 in the third quarter, rather than take a field goal that would’ve whittled Washington’s lead to 29-21.
—Seth Emerson, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2026
Cocurators Marcela Guerrero and Drew Sawyer drew up a list of well over 400 creatives, made studio visits to upwards of 300, and whittled the tally down to 56 individuals, duos, and collectives.
—Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 28 Feb. 2026
Earlier this month, the department whittled the list down to 30 finalists.
—Anthony Bettin, CBS News, 24 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whittled
Verb
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The shutdown has had a massive impact on the finances of Iranians whose businesses rely on internet access and has also effectively cut the people off from the outside world.—
Michael Loria,
USA Today,
9 May 2026
-
After being cut from the high school team each of his first three years, Sloane piled on some muscle, increased the velocity on his fastball and drew college interest last summer.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2026
Verb
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Groenewegen is something like the 10th man down, landing heavily on his shoulder, still clipped into his pedals.—
Jacob Whitehead,
New York Times,
9 May 2026
-
The attack was limited by the fact that the revolver only held 5 bullets and had to be reloaded one bullet at a time, as opposed to assault rifles that often have large detachable magazines that can be clipped in and out rapidly.—
The Denver Post Editorial Board,
Denver Post,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
While the late Irish businessman Ivor Fitzpatrick, who owned the yacht for the past few years, had loved owning it, his widow, Susan, has lowered the price with the goal of moving it more quickly.—
Michael Ballaban,
CNN Money,
9 May 2026
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Scentbird’s unique model lowered the barrier to trial and expanded access in a way that benefits the entire industry.—
Fairchild Studio,
Footwear News,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
In January 2003, angry former Time Warner shareholders booted Case as chairman, and that September, the board dropped the AOL name.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
9 May 2026
-
She was initially charged with murder, but that count was dropped as part of the plea deal, court records show.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
9 May 2026
Verb
-
Russian authorities pared down the event amid security concerns following Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russian territory, especially on oil refineries.—
Zahra Ullah,
CNN Money,
13 May 2026
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Intel was up more than 6% and Qualcomm was up more than 12% before both stocks pared initial gains.—
Tobias Burns,
CNBC,
11 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Whittled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whittled. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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