winnow

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.

Faced with far more applications than slots, prestigious colleges winnow the pool of prospective admits through consideration of their academic records, test scores, activities and personal attributes.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025

Ahead of Iowa, Ms. Haley had been looking to winnow the field.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2024

The point of the process is to winnow the field to a manageable size, and winnowed the field was.

From Slate • Jan. 20, 2024

Sound Transit’s governing board has started to focus on a future Lynnwood-to-Everett line, by voting Thursday to winnow the possible station sites in busy neighborhoods.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 23, 2023

How was she to winnow down her countless questions to a mere troika?

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood