winnow
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Related to winnow: winnow out
win·now
(wĭn′ō)v. win·nowed, win·now·ing, win·nows
v.tr.
1. To separate the chaff from (grain) by means of a current of air.
2. To blow (chaff) off or away.
3. To examine closely in order to separate the good from the bad; sift: The judges winnowed a thousand essays down to six finalists.
4.
a. To separate or get rid of (an undesirable part); eliminate: winnowing out the errors in logic.
b. To sort or select (a desirable part); extract: The investigators winnowed the facts from the testimony.
5. To blow on; fan: a breeze winnowing the tall grass.
v.intr.
1. To separate grain from chaff.
2. To separate the good from the bad.
n.
1. A device for winnowing grain.
2. An act of winnowing.
[Middle English winnewen, alteration of windwen, from Old English windwian, from wind, wind; see wind1.]
win′now·er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
winnow
(ˈwɪnəʊ)vb
1. (Agriculture) to separate (grain) from (chaff) by means of a wind or current of air
2. (tr) to examine in order to select the desirable elements
3. (Zoology) (tr) archaic to beat (the air) with wings
4. (tr) rare to blow upon; fan
n
(Agriculture)
a. a device for winnowing
b. the act or process of winnowing
[Old English windwian; related to Old High German wintōn, Gothic diswinthjan, Latin ventilāre. See wind1]
ˈwinnower n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
win•now
(ˈwɪn oʊ)v.t.
1. to free (grain) of chaff by fanning with wind or a forced current of air.
2. to drive or blow (chaff, dirt, etc.) away by fanning.
3. to blow upon; fan.
4. to subject to some process of separating or distinguishing; analyze critically; sift: to winnow a mass of statements.
5. to separate or distinguish (valuable from worthless parts) (sometimes fol. by out): to winnow fact from fiction.
v.i. 6. to free grain from chaff by wind or driven air.
n. 7. a device used for winnowing.
8. an act of winnowing.
[before 900; Middle English win(d)wen (v.), Old English windwian, derivative of wind wind1]
win′now•er, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
winnow
Past participle: winnowed
Gerund: winnowing
Imperative |
---|
winnow |
winnow |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
Winnow
To clean grain by throwing it, shovelful by shovelful, against the wind.
1001 Words and Phrases You Never Knew You Didn’t Know by W.R. Runyan Copyright © 2011 by W.R. Runyan
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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Noun | 1. | winnow - the act of separating grain from chaff; "the winnowing was done by women" separation - sorting one thing from others; "the separation of wheat from chaff"; "the separation of mail by postal zones" |
Verb | 1. | winnow - separate the chaff from by using air currents; "She stood there winnowing chaff all day in the field" |
2. | winnow - blow on; "The wind was winnowing her hair"; "the wind winnowed the grass" fan - agitate the air | |
3. | winnow - select desirable parts from a group or list; "cull out the interesting letters from the poet's correspondence"; "winnow the finalists from the long list of applicants" | |
4. | winnow - blow away or off with a current of air; "winnow chaff" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
winnow
winnow something or someone out separate, part, screen, select, divide, sort out, comb, sift, cull Most of the faulty products were winnowed out by these processes.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
winnow
verbThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يُذَرّي، يُغَرْبِل
rostál
hreinsa hismi úr korni meî blæstri
vėtyti
vētīt
previať
harman/tahıl savurmak
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
winnow
vt
(fig liter) → sichten
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
winnow
(ˈwinəu) verb to separate the chaff from (the grain) by wind.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.