winnows

verb

present tense third-person singular of winnow
as in culls
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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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of winnows The primary winnows the field for most federal, state and local offices, with the two candidates who receive the most votes advancing to the general election that decides who wins. — John Woolfolk, Mercury News, 18 May 2026 From that group, the Playwrights Project staff winnows down the number to a list of finalists and those scripts are read and judged by a group of theater professionals. — Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for winnows
  1. culls
  2. trims
  3. cuts
  4. reduces
  5. pares
  6. discards
Verb
  • The fastest-growing area is a cluster of skills involving AI agents, according to Draup, which culls data from public job posts and platforms including LinkedIn.
    — Hugh Son, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The model, which does not source without permission, culls mountains of data about the natural world from partners including the Smithsonian, London’s Natural History Museum and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
    — Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2026
Definition of culls
Verb
  • However, his proposal trims the Center’s initial $750 million ask, with other groups also taking much smaller haircuts as well.
    — Ryan Gillespie, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The change, announced in a presentation on Wednesday, is part of a broader shift in Microsoft’s reporting structure, as the company trims its operating segments from three to two.
    — Jordan Novet, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of trims
Verb
  • The column also presents the military leadership cuts as a reason for concern about the resilience of democratic institutions, especially if experienced leaders are removed while the administration concentrates power.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Then, the film cuts to show our protagonist’s hand hovering in front of a slide projector displaying a plot of cheap land in South Carolina where nuclear weapons were developed during the Cold War.
    — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of cuts
Verb
  • Automating classification while reserving human review for high-risk cases strengthens governance, improves compliance and reduces the risk of sensitive data exposure.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Northrop Grumman slashes overall weight and reduces total part counts, manufacturing combat-ready autonomous jets at a fraction of typical costs.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of reduces
Verb
  • Her music accordingly pares down the signature elements of a genre in which reckless abandon and defiant self-expression have long been central.
    — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 23 July 2026
  • In its fifth and final season, The Bear pares itself back.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Definition of pares
Verb
  • If that prediction is wrong, the processor discards the work, although traces can remain behind.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The solution lies in circular economies, where Asia alone discards $91 billion in unrecovered metals annually.
    — Rob Kaplan, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of discards

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winnows
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Cite this Entry

“Winnows.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/winnows. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

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