pare

¹ American  

[pair] / pɛər /

verb (used with object)

pared, paring

1. to cut off the outer coating, layer, or part of.

2. to remove (an outer coating, layer, or part) by cutting (often followed by off oraway ).

3. to reduce or remove by or as by cutting; diminish or decrease gradually (often followed bydown ).

   to pare down one's expenses.

   Synonyms:

   lessen, shave, clip

   Antonyms:

   increase

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Paré ² American  

[pa-rey] / paˈreɪ /

noun

1. Ambroise 1510–90, French surgeon.

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pare ¹ British  

/ pɛə /

verb

1. to peel or cut (the outer layer) from (something)

2. to cut the edges from (the nails); trim

3. to decrease bit by bit

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Paré ² British  

/ pare /

noun

1. Ambroise (ɑ̃brwaz). 1510–90, French surgeon. He reintroduced ligature of arteries following amputation instead of cauterization

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Related Words

See peel ¹.

Other Word Forms

• pareable adjective
• parer noun
• unpared adjective

Etymology

Origin of pare

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English paren, from Middle French parer, “to make ready, trim” from Latin parāre ”to prepare, make ready“; prepare

Example Sentences

The latest positioning data showed that funds pared back their net leverage, meaning they moved from being less aggressively long, to a more market-neutral stance.

From MarketWatch

Berkshire pared back its presence on the company’s board: Abel retired in 2024, and the two remaining Berkshire officials stepped off last year.

From The Wall Street Journal

Oil prices fell more than one percent Friday, though that only partially pared the previous day's surge amid growing anxiety that the conflict will last far longer than first thought.

From Barron's

Facing construction hurdles and bulging budgets, Saudi Arabia has been paring back its megaprojects since last year.

From The Wall Street Journal

All three indexes were on pace for bigger gains earlier in the session in response to lower oil prices, but they pared those back slightly after oil prices ticked up in the afternoon.

From Barron's

Related Words

• cut back
• cut down
• decrease
• lower
• mark down
• prune
• reduce
• scrape
• shave
• slash