as in culled
to remove less desirable choices from a group or list
They winnowed the pool of applicants down to a few of the strongest candidates. I tried to winnow out the options that weren't a good value for the price.
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Recent Examples of winnowed
The field will be winnowed to two finalists, with a vote of the circuit judges determining the winner.
—
Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 29 May 2026
The leadership of the AI trade has been winnowed down to Alphabet along with memory stocks and the energy/electrification infrastructure suppliers, which are exploiting product scarcity to impose a quasi-tax on the builders.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
The Minnesota Department of Transportation has winnowed thousands of submissions for its Name a Snowplow contest down to 30 finalists.
—Anthony Bettin, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
After fermentation and toasting, the beans are winnowed and placed in a melanger, a stone grinder that runs for up to 72 to turn the beans into a velvety, smooth paste.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
Finally, Thoreau winnowed once again, translating some, but not all, of the list items to his charts of general phenomena, and carefully noting the dates on which each phenomenon occurred in the spaces of the grid.
—Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
These associates would then be winnowed out over time.
—Atta Tarki, Harvard Business Review, 2 Oct. 2025
West Point cancelled an award ceremony for Tom Hanks, after having already winnowed its library of potentially offensive books.
—Louis Menand, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2025
The museum has closed and the entire Klairmont collection — which in recent years was winnowed down to 284 cars — will be sold by Mecum Auctions.
—Nina Metz, Boston Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
Clifford Ward, Chicago Tribune, 29 May 2026
The leadership of the AI trade has been winnowed down to Alphabet along with memory stocks and the energy/electrification infrastructure suppliers, which are exploiting product scarcity to impose a quasi-tax on the builders.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
The Minnesota Department of Transportation has winnowed thousands of submissions for its Name a Snowplow contest down to 30 finalists.
—Anthony Bettin, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
After fermentation and toasting, the beans are winnowed and placed in a melanger, a stone grinder that runs for up to 72 to turn the beans into a velvety, smooth paste.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
Finally, Thoreau winnowed once again, translating some, but not all, of the list items to his charts of general phenomena, and carefully noting the dates on which each phenomenon occurred in the spaces of the grid.
—Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
These associates would then be winnowed out over time.
—Atta Tarki, Harvard Business Review, 2 Oct. 2025
West Point cancelled an award ceremony for Tom Hanks, after having already winnowed its library of potentially offensive books.
—Louis Menand, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2025
The museum has closed and the entire Klairmont collection — which in recent years was winnowed down to 284 cars — will be sold by Mecum Auctions.
—Nina Metz, Boston Herald, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for winnowed
Verb
-
Food and drink From local seafood and veggies culled from the island to Japanese fare by Iron Chef Nobu Matsuhisa, the food is a highlight here.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
20 May 2026
-
Ask YouTube pulled up step by step instructions apparently culled from YouTube videos, and the user could click in to jump right to the most relevant part of the video.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
19 May 2026
Verb
-
Ferragamo interior design-darling Michele Bonan has gone for an fresh yet elegant mod-nautical look for the rooms; blue and white striped carpeting, cream headboards, curtains, and bedspreads trimmed in snappy navy, jazzy blue, and white checked chair coverings.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
-
While Pembroke trimmed it to a one-goal game at 5-4 off a shot by Murphy to open the final frame, that was as close as the Titans got.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
The shortstop also rocketed a 441-foot, two-run home run off Giants right-hander Keaton Winn in the eighth to cut San Francisco’s lead to 4-3.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
30 May 2026
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Based on 2026 opening day figures, eight teams would have to cut payroll to get under the cap.—
Ronald Blum,
Fortune,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
It’s liberally dotted with the designer’s personal collection of art and antiques, but still manages to feel pared-back—as if a Scandinavian fairy came down and waved all the potential clutter away.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
-
The major stock market averages initially popped but quickly pared those gains.—
Fred Imbert,
CNBC,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
The Sagamore was reduced to ashes twice before its final form was constructed in the 1920s (hopefully the third time’s a charm).—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
3 June 2026
-
Similarly, following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the European Union created regulations that sharply reduced its dependence on natural gas in favor of renewable sources.—
David Goldman,
CNN Money,
3 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Winnowed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/winnowed. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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