winnow out — verb dismiss from consideration or a contest John was ruled out as a possible suspect because he had a strong alibi This possibility can be eliminated from our consideration • Syn: ↑rule out, ↑eliminate, ↑reject • Verb Frames: Somebody s s … Useful english dictionary
winnow out — PHRASAL VERB If you winnow out part of a group of things or people, you identify the part that is not useful or relevant and the part that is. [WRITTEN] [V P n (not pron)] The committee will need to winnow out the nonsense and produce more… … English dictionary
winnow — win|now [ˈwınəu US nou] v also winnow down [: Old English; Origin: windwian] [T] to make a list, group, or quantity smaller by getting rid of the things that you do not need or want = ↑whittle down ▪ We need to winnow the list of candidates to… … Dictionary of contemporary English
winnow — UK [ˈwɪnəʊ] / US [ˈwɪnoʊ] verb [transitive] Word forms winnow : present tense I/you/we/they winnow he/she/it winnows present participle winnowing past tense winnowed past participle winnowed to remove the outer cover from grain Phrasal verbs:… … English dictionary
winnow — I. verb Etymology: Middle English winewen, from Old English windwian to fan, winnow; akin to Old High German wintōn to fan, Latin vannus winnowing fan, ventus wind more at wind Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. (1) to remove (as… … New Collegiate Dictionary
winnow — win|now [ wınou ] verb transitive to remove the outer cover from grain ,winnow down phrasal verb transitive to reduce the size of a group of people or things so that you only keep the best or most useful ones ,winnow out phrasal verb transitive… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
winnow — [[t]wɪ̱noʊ[/t]] winnows, winnowing, winnowed VERB If you winnow a group of things or people, you reduce its size by separating the ones that are useful or relevant from the ones that are not. [LITERARY] [V n] Administration officials have… … English dictionary
winnow — [win′ō] vt. [ME winewen < OE windwian, to winnow < wind, WIND2] 1. a) to blow the chaff from (grain) by wind or a forced current of air b) to blow off (chaff) in this manner 2. to blow away; scatter 3. to anal … English World dictionary
winnow somebody out (of something) — ˌwinnow sb/sth ˈout (of sth) derived (formal) to remove people or things from a group so that only the best ones are left Syn: sift out Main entry: ↑winnowderived … Useful english dictionary
winnow something out (of something) — ˌwinnow sb/sth ˈout (of sth) derived (formal) to remove people or things from a group so that only the best ones are left Syn: sift out Main entry: ↑winnowderived … Useful english dictionary