whittle
US /ˈwɪt̬.əl/
UK /ˈwɪt.əl/
动词
1.
削, 刻
to carve or shape (wood) by repeatedly cutting small slices from it
示例:
•
He spent the afternoon whittling a small bird out of a piece of wood.
他花了一个下午用一块木头削刻出一只小鸟。
•
Grandpa used to sit on the porch and whittle wooden figures.
爷爷以前常坐在门廊上削刻木制小人。
2.
削减, 减少
to reduce something in size, amount, or extent by a gradual process
示例:
•
They managed to whittle down the list of candidates to three finalists.
他们成功地将候选人名单削减到三名决赛选手。
•
We need to whittle away at the expenses to stay within budget.
我们需要削减开支以保持在预算之内。
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