as in to shave
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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Recent Examples of prune
Too-large plants need to be pruned forever.
—
Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Sep. 2025
This is typically done using techniques like quantization, which involves using fewer bits to represent a model’s weights, or pruning out connections in the neural network that aren’t contributing much to performance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Sep. 2025
Tools like pruning, quantization, and knowledge distillation all reduce model size or speed up inference.
—Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Elizabeth tracks Tanner’s alias Derek Ward to the flower shop Thorny Blooms and finds Tanner violently pruning flowers.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prune
Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Sep. 2025
This is typically done using techniques like quantization, which involves using fewer bits to represent a model’s weights, or pruning out connections in the neural network that aren’t contributing much to performance.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Sep. 2025
Tools like pruning, quantization, and knowledge distillation all reduce model size or speed up inference.
—Ron Schmelzer, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Elizabeth tracks Tanner’s alias Derek Ward to the flower shop Thorny Blooms and finds Tanner violently pruning flowers.
—Barry Levitt, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prune
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prune
Verb
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The lone artisan in his shop shaving out a single bow at a time from a stave of wood was a thing of the past.—
Clare Conley,
Outdoor Life,
18 Sep. 2025
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In that case, 33-year-old TJ Hoover woke up in the operating room to find people shaving his chest, bathing his body in surgical solution and talking about harvesting his organs.—
Jacqueline Howard,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The junior wideout slipped loose into the secondary, breaking free for a 51-yard touchdown reception as the Harbormen cut things to a 21-13 game.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
20 Sep. 2025
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The Fed may have seen the quarter-point interest rate cut on September 17 as necessary because the labor market is flagging.—
Erik Sherman,
Forbes.com,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Control expenses This means trimming or eliminating the costs that don’t directly impact growth, profitability, or long-term sustainability of your business.—
Melissa Houston,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
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To save money in 2026, MetroConnect will drop some low-ridership zones, trim operating hours and impose a three-mile cap on trips, said Natalia Jaramillo, communications director for Levine Cava.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Just before overseeding, reduce the mowing height of the existing grass by 25 percent.—
Megan Hughes,
Better Homes & Gardens,
15 Sep. 2025
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Avoid heavy foot traffic on the grass and don’t mow it.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prune.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prune. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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