whittle down
English edit
Verb edit
whittle down (third-person singular simple present whittles down, present participle whittling down, simple past and past participle whittled down)
- (transitive) To reduce gradually by removing pieces.
Derived terms edit
Further reading edit
- “whittle down”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
- “whittle down”, in Collins English Dictionary.
- “whittle down” (US) / “whittle down” (UK) in Macmillan English Dictionary.