whittle down
phrasal verb
whittled down; whittling down; whittles down
: to gradually make (something) smaller by removing parts
We whittled the list down to four people.
Examples of whittle down in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The two agreed in January 2023 to restructure their partnership, with the French company whittling down its stake in the Japanese carmaker to 15%, a significant milestone in their long collaboration.
—
Junko Ogura, CNN, 13 Feb. 2025
Reed was one of 18 applicants for the job and the list was whittled down to six finalists by a state university search team, headed by Terry McDaniel of Indiana State University.
—Carole Carlson, Chicago Tribune, 12 Feb. 2025
The second would then see targets whittled down to create a definitive list of players worthy of pursuit that summer.
—Philip Buckingham, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
The documentary features remaining in contention for an Oscar nomination have been whittled down from 169 to a shortlist of a mere 15, a brutal culling that has inevitably left many filmmakers disappointed, and a select few in celebratory mode.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for whittle down
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Junko Ogura, CNN, 13 Feb. 2025
Reed was one of 18 applicants for the job and the list was whittled down to six finalists by a state university search team, headed by Terry McDaniel of Indiana State University.
—Carole Carlson, Chicago Tribune, 12 Feb. 2025
The second would then see targets whittled down to create a definitive list of players worthy of pursuit that summer.
—Philip Buckingham, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
The documentary features remaining in contention for an Oscar nomination have been whittled down from 169 to a shortlist of a mere 15, a brutal culling that has inevitably left many filmmakers disappointed, and a select few in celebratory mode.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for whittle down
Cite this Entry
“Whittle down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whittle%20down. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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