Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But men and women were winnowing down pools of potential suitors long before Tinder, Bumble and Grindr were thought of through matchmaking and speed dating.
From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2023
Heart specialists, meanwhile, were winnowing lists of 4-Fs in a nationwide experiment to determine how many men rejected for cardiac ailments might be salvaged for limited service.
From Time Magazine Archive
They were winnowing the drippings of dust washed down from the pocket now, and this job soon would be done.
From The Snow-Burner by Henry Oyen
Then we passed the poor clay-built village of Deâneh, where the people were winnowing a large harvest of millet, and the Government tax-farmers with their soldiers, lent by the authorities, measuring the heaps.
From Byeways in Palestine by James Finn
