whittle

Teams must whittle their roster from 90 or 91 players down to 53 by 31 August.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026

For more than a decade, I’ve been teaching a course at the California Institute of the Arts called American Drama Now, and each year the selection of plays has become harder to whittle down.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026

Builders had hoped to capitalize on a busy spring buying season to whittle down inventories, but it was disappointing.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 16, 2026

Nonprofits are hoping for an influx of cash from the newly wealthy—not only those looking to whittle down tax bills but a new crop of donors with deeply held convictions about charitable giving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

The first two days’ worth of competition was to whittle those two thousand plus fencers down to a manageable sixty-four when the elimination bouts began.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

That’s because inflation whittles away at the real purchasing power of those future interest payments.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026

A newer House version whittles this down to 23 countries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 10, 2025

Even as the state hospital whittles down its waitlist, it’s still grappling with how to handle the influx of patients with a wide range of needs.

From Seattle Times ● May 28, 2024

This event often whittles down the primary field to a handful of candidates.

From Reuters ● Aug. 16, 2023

It whittles you down to lie up to fifty times in the space of the fifteen minutes or so it takes to do a “survey,” even when there’s a higher moral purpose to serve.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich

The second series of the hit BBC One show finished on Friday, after the original 21 celebs were whittled down to seven finalists.

From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026

The agents haggled over prices for potato chips and whittled down operating costs with impressive acumen.

From Slate ● Oct. 25, 2026

Originally conceived as a $23-billion bond measure that the Legislature would approve to go before voters in November, it was whittled down to $12 billion.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

Even the final list of 16 host cities, whittled down from 23, came down to his personal preferences.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

He’d whittled himself a good-sized niche in my heart.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson

Japan has been whittling down its debt load—which stands at about 200% of GDP—and is running one of the smallest budget deficits among major economies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

After whittling what had been a 24-point deficit to four with a little more than three minutes left Saturday, the Bruins could not find the miracle finish they were seeking.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 3, 2026

But the key is to put a cap on how much you spend to avoid falling into the trap of whittling away your winnings.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 12, 2025

And Bryson DeChambeau was whittling away after losing five of the first seven to Fitzpatrick.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2025

He sat by the fire, pleasantly full of meat, whittling a whistle from a piece of grouse bone.

From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver