whittling

[hwit-ling, wit-] /ˈʰwɪt lɪŋ, ˈwɪt-/
noun
1.
the act of a person who whittles.
2.
Often, whittlings. a bit or chip whittled off.
Origin
1605-15; whittle + -ing1

whittle

[hwit-l, wit-l] /ˈʰwɪt l, ˈwɪt l/
verb (used with object), whittled, whittling.
1.
to cut, trim, or shape (a stick, piece of wood, etc.) by carving off bits with a knife.
2.
to form by whittling:
to whittle a figure.
3.
to cut off (a bit).
4.
to reduce the amount of, as if by whittling; pare down; take away by degrees (usually followed by down, away, etc.):
to whittle down the company's overhead; to whittle away one's inheritance.
verb (used without object), whittled, whittling.
5.
to whittle wood or the like with a knife, as in shaping something or as a mere aimless diversion:
to spend an afternoon whittling.
6.
to tire oneself or another by worrying or fussing.
noun
7.
British Dialect. a knife, especially a large one, as a carving knife or a butcher knife.
Origin
1375-1425; late Middle English (noun), dialectal variant of thwitel knife, Old English thwīt(an) to cut + -el -le
Related forms
whittler, noun
Examples from the web for whittling
  • whittling this mountain of degrees, awards, and experience down to one perfect professor will be daunting.
  • Don't let your tardiness be responsible for whittling it down further.
  • The market had expected some form of easing but had not imagined a whittling of interest rates, however symbolic.
  • The market had expected some form of monetary easing but hadn't imagined a whittling of interest rates, even if merely symbolic.
  • Filthy and lethargic, he sat by the fire, aimlessly whittling away at small sticks and turning them into barbed hooks.
  • But, of course, they've been whittling away at their music offerings for quite a while now.
  • Avoid whittling the sides of the trunk down to fit a stand.
  • On cross-examination, defense counsel was successful in whittling the number down to five instead of seven.
  • We continue this process of whittling down the number of possible candidates with each bit of new information.
  • Practically every amendment has resulted in the whittling away of the electorate's civil liberties in one way or another.
British Dictionary definitions for whittling

whittle

/ˈwɪtəl/
verb
1.
to cut or shave strips or pieces from (wood, a stick, etc), esp with a knife
2.
(transitive) to make or shape by paring or shaving
3.
(transitive; often foll by away, down, off, etc) to reduce, destroy, or wear away gradually
4.
(Northern English, dialect) (intransitive) to complain or worry about something continually
noun
5.
(Brit, dialect) a knife, esp a large one
Derived Forms
whittler, noun
Word Origin
C16: variant of C15 thwittle large knife, from Old English thwitel, from thwītan to cut; related to Old Norse thveitr cut, thveita to beat

Whittle

/ˈwɪtəl/
noun
1.
Sir Frank. 1907–96, English engineer, who invented the jet engine for aircraft; flew first British jet aircraft (1941)
Word Origin and History for whittling

whittle

v.

1550s, "to cut thin shavings from (something) with a knife," from Middle English whittel "a knife" (c1400), variant of thwittle (late 14c.), from Old English þwitan "to cut," from Proto-Germanic *thwitanan (cf. Old Norse þveita "to hew"). Figurative sense is attested from 1746. Related: Whittled; whittling.

whittling in Science
Whittle
  (wĭt'l)   
British aeronautical engineer and inventor who developed the first aircraft engine powered by jet propulsion in 1937.