as in cuts
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 whittles
Typically, Cameron whittles his selections for each part down to five or six actors based on recommendations and audition tapes, and not only meets with them but tries to create some of the circumstances that will be replicated on set.
—
Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 22 Dec. 2025
Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 22 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whittles
Verb
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Sadly, the Oscar orchestra cuts them off before another songwriter can speak.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
16 Mar. 2026
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It is easily reached by a highway that cuts cleanly through the Sonoran Desert, past wind turbines spinning in their hundreds.—
Sophie Morgan,
Condé Nast Traveler,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The holder clips right to your pack or waders and keeps everything in a neat, easy-to-dispense stack.—
Francesca Krempa,
Outside,
23 Dec. 2025
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The carry handles each have a magnetic piece that then clips together to form a single bar to grasp.—
Adam Campbell-Schmitt,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The program progressively lowers the amount of greenhouse gas emissions allowed in the state, and lets emitters buy and sell unused pollution credits, or allowances.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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That significantly lowers the bill for users running OpenClaw.—
Evelyn Cheng,Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Marvel Avengers Expansion Impressions The biggest strength of the Marvel Multiverse Role Playing Game expansions continues to be succinct writing that pares down decades of comic book history into a short but informative chapter.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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This is a sweet, redemptive film that pares back some of the more extreme dramatic elements of Perry’s earlier work to tell a straightforward, second-chance-at-love story.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Phoenix could hit 107 degrees early next week, while Chicago drops to single digits and Great Lakes regions prepare for multiple feet of snow.—
Seth Borenstein,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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If income drops or something unexpected happens, there may not be much of a cushion.—
Mike Winters,
CNBC,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Advertisement The court's decision not only curtails a policy Trump has repeatedly credited with strengthening American leverage abroad, but also carries major financial and legal consequences.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
20 Feb. 2026
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Think of this as the pessimistic, narrower option, where the greenhouse effect curtails the zone's inner edge and the loss of carbon dioxide from a planetary atmosphere marks its outer edge.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The urgency has grown as his career runway shortens.—
Douglas Robson,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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The new plan shortens the time between missions and redraws the map of which launches will achieve various program milestones.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Recycling sports equipment not only keeps it out of landfills, but reduces the need for new equipment to be manufactured, Clarkin said.—
Michelle Mullins,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Mar. 2026
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Being up to date on taxes reduces the amount of penalties and interest that builds from waiting.—
Michael Butler,
Miami Herald,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Whittles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whittles. Accessed 16 Mar. 2026.
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