the act of separating grain from chaff; "the winnowing was done by women" remove by a current of air; "winnow chaff" treat by exposure to a current of air so that waste matter is eliminated; "winnow grain" separate from chaff; "She stood there winnowing grain all day in the field" blow on; "The wind was winnowing her hair
To fan; set in motion by means of wind; specifically, to expose (grain) to a current of air in order to separate and drive off chaff, refuse particles, etc
To separate, expel, or disperse by or as by fanning or blowing; to sift or weed out; to separate or distinguish, as one thing from another
Figuratively, to subject to a process analogous to the winnowing of grain; to separate into parts according to kind; to sift; to analyze or scrutinize carefully; to examine; to test
If you winnow a group of things or people, you reduce its size by separating the ones that are useful or relevant from the ones that are not. Administration officials have winnowed the list of candidates to three. to make a list, group, or quantity smaller by getting rid of the things that you do not need or want = whittle down
If you winnow out part of a group of things or people, you identify the part that is not useful or relevant and the part that is. The committee will need to winnow out the nonsense and produce more practical proposals if it is to achieve results Time has winnowed out certain of the essays as superior