PRUNES Synonyms: 25 Similar and Opposite Words

prunes

verb

present tense third-person singular of prune

as in shaves

to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument pruned the dead branches from the old apple tree

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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 prunes On one canvas, a woman prunes a plant and a cook tends his stove atop amid a procession of celestial beings. — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 24 Sep. 2026 Cadet, who spent several years working as a florist, prunes the thick green stems of the faux lilies and roses. — Elly Fishman, Vogue, 8 May 2026 Van Tassel prunes her tomatoes throughout the season for better air circulation. — Lauren David, Southern Living, 3 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for prunes

Verb

That shaves a year off the typical 120-hour bachelor’s degree.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
For example, using behind-the-meter battery storage or local generation during peak windows actively shaves expensive demand charges without sacrificing performance.

— Ray Fernandez, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of shaves

Verb

The resulting walk-away safe design prevents fuel meltdowns by basic physical principles, which significantly lowers manufacturing costs and trims regulatory hurdles.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2026
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

Definition of trims

Verb

Which is why golf buddies Tyler Kenney and Zach Smith founded Laced Golf, a digital device that clips onto your shoelaces and gives you real-time feedback on your stance using lights and haptic vibration.

— Eliza Thompson, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
All of my essentials are packed in my Stowaway, which clips into my weekender as a bag organizer, and can clip out to be worn on its own as a crossbody when walking around during the day or as a clutch when going out in the evening.

— Elly Leavitt, Vogue, 16 July 2026

Definition of clips

Verb

Scrolling through Reddit and X feels claustrophobic because the screen aggressively crops out so much content.

— Kimberly Gedeon, PC Magazine, 3 Aug. 2026
When a user uploads a photo, the algorithm locates the bee, crops the image and compares it to our database.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 14 Nov. 2025

Definition of crops

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pruned

prunes

pruning

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“Prunes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prunes. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of prunes

verb

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