prune

¹ American  

[proon] / prun /

noun

• prunes
  plural

1. a variety of plum that dries without spoiling.

2. such a plum when dried.

3. any plum.

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prune ² American  

[proon] / prun /

verb (used with object)

pruned, pruning

1. to cut or lop off (twigs, branches, or roots).

2. to cut or lop superfluous or undesired twigs, branches, or roots from; trim.

3. to rid or clear of (anything superfluous or undesirable).

4. to remove (anything considered superfluous or undesirable).

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prune ³ American  

[proon] / prun /

verb (used with object)

pruned, pruning

1. Archaic. to preen.

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prune ¹ British  

/ pruːn /

noun

1. a purplish-black partially dried fruit of any of several varieties of plum tree

2. slang a dull, uninteresting, or foolish person

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prune ² British  

/ pruːn /

verb

1. to remove (dead or superfluous twigs, branches, etc) from (a tree, shrub, etc), esp by cutting off

2. to remove (anything undesirable or superfluous) from (a book, etc)

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prune ³ British  

/ pruːn /

verb

1. an archaic word for preen 1

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prune Idioms  

1. see full of beans, def. 2.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prunability
  noun
• pruner
  noun
• prunable
  adjective
• unprunable
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• prunes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of prune¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English prune, pruna, prum “plum, dried plum, prune,” from Old French prune, pronne, prume, from unrecorded Vulgar Latin prūna, neuter plural (taken as feminine singular) of Latin prūnum “plum,” from Greek proû(m)non, from a language of ancient Anatolia, where the tree and its fruit originated; see also plum

Origin of prune²

First recorded in 1400–50; from Middle English prouynen, from Middle French prougner, from Old French prooignier, proignier, poroindre “to cut back (vines); prune”; further origin uncertain; perhaps from unrecorded Vulgar Latin prōrotundiāre “to make round, cut in a rounded shape”; perhaps a variant of French provigner “to layer vines,” a derivative of provain “scion,” from Latin propāgin-, stem of propāgō; see origin at propagate; see also rotund ( def. )

Origin of prune³

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English prunen, pruynen, proy(g)nen, from Old French poroign-, present stem of poroindre, equivalent to por- (from Latin pro-) + oindre “to anoint”; see origin at pro- ¹, unguent; see also preen ¹

Explanation

To prune means to clip, crop, cut back, and weed out. Pruning usually happens to overgrown trees and bushes, but can also be helpful for wild eyebrows and guest lists that are too long. You may have also heard of another form of prune: the kind you eat. But other than dried plums, the word is generally used in verb form to describe giving something a much needed trim. Gardeners prune plants, cutting back dead branches and weak parts so they can thrive and grow better. Companies prune budgets to cut back on unnecessary spending. And you might need to prune your baseball hat collection if you're running out of places to put them.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prune prunes pruned pruning

You can sharpen your strengths and prune a position into something that you truly enjoy.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 22, 2026

Over three decades, Smith helped successive Fed chairs with differing styles hone the communication apparatus Warsh now wants to prune.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

Trees and plants are well-manicured: officials prune, shape and clear the shrubs regularly, and parks are governed by an elaborate rulebook that includes bans on activities like cycling, skating and kite-flying, depending on the park.

From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026

Arnold wasn’t afraid to prune the portfolio either.

From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026

I’d had a piece of prune bread headed for my mouth when Aunt Goldie spoke.

From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles

His team created deli-style versions of some of his breakfast menu, including Earl Grey prunes and crumpets with smoked trout.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

Many Sonoma growers had historically considered grapes a crop of last resort, compared with more profitable apples, prunes and olives.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2025

Think of classic pairings: sautéed apples with pork chops, applesauce with latkes, or the tangy sweetness of prunes in dishes like Chicken Marbella.

From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2025

But for long, long decades before, Santa Clara County was “the Valley of Heart’s Delight,” a bee-and-blossom Eden of fragrant fruit: cherries, apricots, and mostly plums for prunes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2024

You can only get so far in this life on canned whole prunes.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

But no one expected a live demonstration, and certainly not from one of the esteemed artists featured within the museum’s pristinely pruned collection.

From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026

Having pruned the administrative state and cut red tape, experts say Lam will focus on spurring private sector growth and digital and technological progress.

From Barron's ● Jan. 18, 2026

A recent revision of history textbooks has pruned chapters on the Mughal era, the Muslim dynasty that came from central Asia and ruled swaths of northern India for centuries.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 20, 2025

Thousands of trees across the city have been reinforced or pruned to prevent them from falling.

From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2025

Numbed and pruned it; by six o’clock, fewer than three hundred persons remained.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

“Yes, there are laws,” said Jesus, his face wrinkled from years of harvesting garlic, pruning grape vines and picking blackberries in the sun-baked San Joaquin Valley.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

Is Microsoft laying off 3,200 employees from the Xbox division just a new boss coming in and pruning an overgrown asset, or is it a sign that console gaming is coming to the end?

From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026

Berlin recently said it would gradually raise the retirement age to 70 from 67—a move that could eventually improve competitiveness by pruning a system that is funded by employers and employees.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026

They’re pruning good investors who had a down year and keeping mediocre ones who got lucky.

From MarketWatch ● May 12, 2026

So off she went, leaving me filling the root cellar with bushel baskets of vegetables, pruning the fruit trees, spreading the compost—getting ready for winter.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman

Related Words

• cut back
• shave
• shear
• shorten
• snip