pickings

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But for 2½ hours she got the error message and could not access the pool of tickets until 12:30 p.m., by which time, she said, “the pickings were slim.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

Squirrels should be smart enough to take the easy pickings over the puzzle box.

From Slate • Jan. 25, 2026

“There are slimmer pickings, and I think a lot of the opportunities that were historically available are harder to come by,” he said, regarding funding.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 29, 2025

This year, low rainfall led to slim pickings in the West Bank, including for the tree whose many nicknames include the Elder, the Bedouin Tree and Mother of Olives.

From Barron's • Nov. 7, 2025

The pickings at the commissary were always slim, however.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown