whittle

1 of 2

verb

whit·​tle ˈ(h)wi-tᵊl 

whittled; whittling ˈ(h)wi-tᵊl-iŋ 

ˈ(h)wit-liŋ

transitive verb

1

a

: to pare or cut off chips from the surface of (wood) with a knife

b

: to shape or form by so paring or cutting

2

: to reduce, remove, or destroy gradually as if by cutting off bits with a knife : pare

whittle down expenses

intransitive verb

1

: to cut or shape something (such as wood) by or as if by paring it with a knife

2

: to wear oneself or another out with fretting

whittler

ˈ(h)wit-lər, 

ˈ(h)wi-tᵊl-ər 

noun

whittle

2 of 2

noun

archaic

: a large knife

Examples of whittle in a Sentence

Verb

He was sitting on the porch, whittling a stick.

She whittled a walking stick from a maple tree branch.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The authors disagreed with that earlier assessment, concluding that the bone marks were more consistent with whittling using a sharp implement. —Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 11 June 2026

The group stage of the tournament (June 11-27) will whittle the field from 48 to 32 teams. —Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026

Despite the Fever opening up a sizable lead at that point, the Mystics battled back, whittling it down to just two points halfway through the fourth and one point with a minute remaining. —Ian Miller, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026

Leaders have reinforced that narrative by whittling their workforces in the name of AI. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 1 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English whittel, alteration of thwitel, from thwiten to whittle, from Old English thwītan; akin to Old Norse thveita to hew

First Known Use

Verb

1552, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing whittle

• whittle away
• whittle down

Rhymes for whittle

• acquittal
• belittle
• committal
• hospital
• popliteal
• submittal
• transmittal
• brittle
• kittel
• kittle
• little
• spital

Kids Definition

whittle

verb

whit·​tle

ˈhwit-ᵊl, 

ˈwit-

whittled; whittling

-liŋ, 

-ᵊl-iŋ

1

a

: to shave or cut off chips from the surface of wood with a knife

b

: to shape or form by so shaving or cutting

2

: to reduce gradually : pare

whittle down expenses

whittler

-lər, 

-ᵊl-ər

noun