Trends ofprune
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prune
(pruːn)
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense prunes, present participle pruning, past tense, past participle pruned
1. countable noun
A prune is a dried plum.
2. verb
When you prune a tree or bush, you cut off some of the branches so that it will grow better the next year.
You have to prune a bush if you want fruit. [VERB noun]
There is no best way to prune. [VERB]
Synonyms: cut, trim, clip, dock More Synonyms of prune
Prune back means the same as prune.
Apples, pears and cherries can be pruned back when they've lost their leaves. [be VERB-ed PARTICLE]
[Also VERB noun PARTICLE]3. verb
If you prune something, you cut out all the parts that you do not need.
Firms are cutting investment and pruning their product ranges. [VERB noun]
Prune back means the same as prune.
The company has pruned back its workforce by 20,000 since 1989. [VERB PARTICLE noun]
Phrasal verbs:
See prune back
More Synonyms of prune
prune in British English 1
(pruːn)
noun
1.
a purplish-black partially dried fruit of any of several varieties of plum tree
2. slang, mainly British
a dull, uninteresting, or foolish person
Word origin
C14: from Old French prune, from Latin prūnum plum, from Greek prounonprune in British English 2
(pruːn)
verb
1.
to remove (dead or superfluous twigs, branches, etc) from (a tree, shrub, etc), esp by cutting off
2.
to remove (anything undesirable or superfluous) from (a book, etc)
Derived forms
prunable (ˈprunable) adjective
pruner (ˈpruner)
noun
Word origin
C15: from Old French proignier to clip, probably from provigner to prune vines, from provain layer (of a plant), from Latin propāgo a cuttingprune in British English 3
(pruːn)
verb
an archaic word for preen1
prune in American English 1
(prun)
verb transitiveWord forms: pruned or ˈpruning
1.
to remove dead or living parts from (a plant) so as to increase fruit or flower production or improve the form
2.
to cut out or get rid of as being unnecessary
3.
to reduce or diminish by removing what is unnecessary
verb intransitive
4.
to cut away or remove unnecessary parts
Derived forms
pruner (ˈpruner) noun
Word origin
ME prouynen < OFr prooignier, prob. < provaignier, to cut < provain (< L propago: see propagate), a slip, infl. by rooignier, to cut off < LL *rotundiare < L rotundus, round: see rotundprune in American English 2
(prun)
noun
1.
a plum dried for eating
2.
any of various varieties of plum that can be dried without spoiling
3. US, Slang
a dull or otherwise unpleasant person
Word origin
ME < MFr < VL pruna < L prunum < Gr proumnon, plumprune in American English 3
(prun)
verb transitive, verb intransitiveWord forms: pruned or ˈpruning
Archaic
to preen or dress up
Word origin
ME proinen < OFr poroindre < por- (for pro-) + oindre (< L ungere), to anointImage ofprune
© Sailorr, shutterstock
Examples of 'prune' in a sentenceprune
In other languagesprune
British English: prune /pruːn/ NOUN
A prune is a dried plum.
- American English: prune
- Arabic: بَرْقُوقٌ مُجَفَّفٌ
- Brazilian Portuguese: ameixa seca
- Chinese: 梅干
- Croatian: suha šljiva
- Czech: sušená švestka
- Danish: sveske
- Dutch: gedroogde pruim
- European Spanish: ciruela pasa
- Finnish: kuivattu luumu
- French: pruneau
- German: Backpflaume
- Greek: ξερό δαμάσκηνο
- Italian: prugna secca
- Japanese: プルーン
- Korean: 말린 자두
- Norwegian: sviske
- Polish: suszona śliwka
- European Portuguese: ameixa seca
- Romanian: prună uscată
- Russian: чернослив
- Latin American Spanish: ciruela pasa
- Swedish: katrinplommon
- Thai: พลัมแห้ง
- Turkish: kuru erik
- Ukrainian: чорнослив
- Vietnamese: mận khô
Chinese translation of 'prune'
prune
(pruːn)
n (c)
-
梅干(乾)
(méigān) (颗, kē)
vt
- [bush, plant, tree]
修剪
(xiūjiǎn)
1 (verb)
Definition
to cut off dead or surplus branches of (a tree or shrub)
You have to prune the bushes if you want fruit.
Synonyms
cut
The previous tenants hadn't even cut the grass.
trim
My friend trims my hair every eight weeks.
clip
I saw an old man out clipping his hedge.
dock
He threatened to dock her fee.
shape
cut back
shorten
The day surgery will help to shorten waiting lists.
snip
Snip the corners off the card.
lop
Someone lopped the heads off our tulips.
pare down
2 (verb)
Definition
to shorten or reduce
Economic hard times are forcing the company to prune their budget.
Synonyms
reduce
Consumption is being reduced by 25 per cent.
cut
The first priority is to cut costs.
cut back
trim
They looked at ways they could trim these costs.
cut down
pare down
make reductions in
Additional synonyms
in the sense of clip
Definition
to cut or trim with scissors or shears
I saw an old man out clipping his hedge.
Synonyms
trim,
cut,
crop,
dock,
prune,
shorten,
shear,
cut short,
snip,
parein the sense of dock
He threatened to dock her fee.
Synonyms
cut,
reduce,
decrease,
diminish,
cut back,
lessenin the sense of lop
Definition
to cut (parts) off a tree or body
Someone lopped the heads off our tulips.
Synonyms
cut,
crop,
chop,
trim,
clip,
dock,
hack,
detach,
prune,
shorten,
sever,
curtail,
truncateSynonyms of 'prune'
prune
Explore 'prune' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of shorten
Definition
to make or become short or shorter
The day surgery will help to shorten waiting lists.
Synonyms
cut,
reduce,
decrease,
cut down,
trim,
diminish,
dock,
cut back,
prune,
lessen,
curtail,
abbreviate,
truncate,
abridge,
downsize
in the sense of snip
Definition
to cut with small quick strokes with scissors or shears
Snip the corners off the card.
Synonyms
cut,
nick,
clip,
crop,
trim,
dock,
notch,
nip off
in the sense of trim
Definition
to make (something) neater by cutting it slightly without changing its basic shape
My friend trims my hair every eight weeks.
Synonyms
cut,
crop,
clip,
dock,
shave,
barber,
tidy,
prune,
shear,
pare,
lop,
even up,
neatenin the sense of trim
Definition
to reduce or lower the size of
They looked at ways they could trim these costs.
Synonyms
cut back,
reduce,
decrease,
cut down,
prune,
curtail,
scale down,
slim down,
pare down,
make reductions in,
make cutbacks in,
retrench on,
dock