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.

A newer House version whittles this down to 23 countries.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 10, 2025

This event often whittles down the primary field to a handful of candidates.

From Reuters • Aug. 16, 2023

Every day, new development next to I-5 whittles away at opportunities to build a connected landscape in Southwest Washington.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 1, 2023

“When that whittles away, or is less sticky, bad things happen.”

From Washington Post • Feb. 13, 2023

It whittles you down to lie up to fifty times in the space of the fifteen minutes or so it takes to do a “survey,” even when there’s a higher moral purpose to serve.

From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich