Advertisement
Advertisement
whittle
1[ hwit-l, wit-l ]
verb (used with object)
- to cut, trim, or shape (a stick, piece of wood, etc.) by carving off bits with a knife.
- to form by whittling:
to whittle a figure.
- to cut off (a bit).
- to reduce the amount of, as if by whittling; pare down; take away by degrees (usually followed by down, away, etc.):
to whittle down the company's overhead; to whittle away one's inheritance.
verb (used without object)
- to whittle wood or the like with a knife, as in shaping something or as a mere aimless diversion:
to spend an afternoon whittling.
- to tire oneself or another by worrying or fussing.
noun
- British Dialect. a knife, especially a large one, as a carving knife or a butcher knife.
Whittle
2[ hwit-l, wit-l ]
noun
- Sir Frank, 1907–96, English engineer and inventor.
whittle
1/ ˈɪə /
verb
- to cut or shave strips or pieces from (wood, a stick, etc), esp with a knife
- tr to make or shape by paring or shaving
- tr; often foll by away, down, off, etc to reduce, destroy, or wear away gradually
- dialect.intr to complain or worry about something continually
noun
- dialect.a knife, esp a large one
Whittle
2/ ˈɪə /
noun
- WhittleSir Frank19071996MEnglishTECHNOLOGY: engineerTECHNOLOGY: inventor Sir Frank. 1907–96, English engineer, who invented the jet engine for aircraft; flew first British jet aircraft (1941)
Whittle
- British aeronautical engineer and inventor who developed the first aircraft engine powered by jet propulsion in 1937.
Derived Forms
- ˈɳٳٱ, noun
Other Word Forms
- ɳt noun
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of whittle1
Example Sentences
Then, as Joe tries and fails to whittle away at Brontë’s sense of self in a bid to regain her affections, he realizes that he has lost control.
But that profit gets whittled away once you add in the cost of other business operations.
These were whittled down to 43 individual allegations of racism against 27 people that could be investigated further - including 13 claims from Mr Haq that spanned his club and international career.
Then, executive producer Michaels whittles a pile of 40 or so sketches down to about 15 — maybe 10 that everyone agrees on, plus another five outliers.
But soon they'd whittled down the list to just one name: his.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Browse