as in to cut down
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Recent Examples of Synonyms for whittle (down)
Verb
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Another way cities are cutting back on pavement is by dropping regulations that require a minimum number of parking spaces for new residential or commercial buildings.—
Aya Diab,
Fortune,
23 May 2026 -
High-pressure roles are filled with many uncontrollable factors, and cutting back on self-care is often the result.—
Julian Hayes II,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2026
Verb
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To overcome it, most people are able to focus on a single speaker's voice, which cues the brain to amplify that sound and turn down the rest.—
Jon Hamilton,
NPR,
14 May 2026
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The opportunity to interview these people would never have been turned down by other organizations, but there was also a sense that these dictators and terrorists and authoritarians were realizing that CNN were giving them this unfiltered platform to speak to the American people.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
13 May 2026
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“Whittle (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whittle%20%28down%29. Accessed 26 May. 2026.
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