WINNOWING Synonyms: 122 Similar and Opposite Words

winnowing

verb

present participle of winnow

as in culling

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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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 winnowing With 21 applicants to choose from, the Miami-Dade School Board kicked off the process of winnowing down that field to select a new superintendent at a special meeting Wednesday. — Austin Horn june 25, Miami Herald, 25 June 2026 Even in the face of Comcast’s subscriber-winnowing move to shift NESN to its pricier service tier, the network’s ratings continue to grow. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 12 June 2026 Iowa’s legislative funnel deadline has done its job again, winnowing the list of bills that still could become laws this year. — Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register, 20 Mar. 2026 The club is winnowing down its pitching options. — Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 9 Mar. 2026 Is the only pleasure in her winnowing life to be denied? — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 17 Feb. 2026 All that standing and walking and winnowing down culminated with Tuesday night’s best in show event. — Poupay Jutharat, Vogue, 4 Feb. 2026 The fewer skiing trails and snow resorts that exist around the world, the more expensive and inaccessible these sports will become, winnowing the potential pool of future Olympians further. — Laura Millan, Bloomberg, 4 Feb. 2026 As in baseball, the awards race may be winnowing to the two true outcomes — a world where Best Picture nominees are either a huge Hollywood blockbuster or a foreign-language film from Cannes. — Nate Jones, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for winnowing

Verb

Those who support the baboons being removed say the only serious alternative is culling.

— Will Barker, TheWeek, 5 Oct. 2026
The past five years were a culling season of sorts for the Prada Group.

— Roy Stephen Canivel, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of culling

Verb

Rather than trimming that weight, Fukushima's lab asked whether anything needed to be worn at all.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 Oct. 2026
Spectator interference became the ruling, and Volpe was awarded an RBI double that scored Lombard from first base, trimming Tampa Bay's lead to 4-3.

— ABC News, ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of trimming

Verb

Upgrading to the Thrust Variant requires a $245,000 follow-up payment and adds SpaceX cold-gas rear thrusters alongside an active multi-mode fan system for downforce, cutting acceleration down to under a second.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026
And by cutting China off, Washington gave Beijing every reason to build its own alternatives.

— Nicholas Gordon, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of cutting

Verb

While serving as a public health official, el Sayed wrote an op-ed in 2019 strongly supporting the Green New Deal, arguing that reducing greenhouse gas emissions will help improve public health.

— Maydeen Merino, The Washington Examiner, 15 Oct. 2026
Together, the tools could help accelerate the development of more resilient electric motor systems while reducing the risks associated with critical material shortages, volatile supply chains and rapidly changing global markets.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of reducing

Verb

Since their debut in 1986, American Girl has shrunk their historical line significantly–including paring down the traditional six-book set for each historical character into two streamlined texts.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
Boeing shares were up as much as 3% in premarket trading before paring back some of those gains.

— Sawdah Bhaimiya, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of paring

Browse Nearby Words

winnowed (out)

winnowing

winnows

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“Winnowing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/winnowing. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of winnowing

verb

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