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had been paring
  • past perfect progressive of pare.

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.

After a months-long rise, Brent crude in September hit its highest level since late 2022, although prices had been paring some of those gains this month.

From Reuters • Oct. 9, 2023

"We had been paring back in Credit Suisse, had an internal negative outlook for a little over a year."

From Reuters • Mar. 22, 2023

The hiring freeze came at the same time Amazon had been paring back some projects, including robotics experiments, a virtual travel experience, a video device for kids and personal delivery robots.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 15, 2022

He put up the penknife with which he had been paring his nails while wondering why his hands had become so thin, and awaited events.

From Trent's Trust, and Other Stories by Harte, Bret

He had been paring potatoes for dinner and what was left of his right hand held the shank of his potato knife.

From The San Francisco calamity by earthquake and fire by Morris, Charles