picking noun (-s) Etymology: from gerund of pick (I) 1.pickingsplural: something that is picked or picked up: as a.: gleanable or eatable fragments especially from refuse : scraps < the dogs have scanty pickings in that house > b.: share of spoils c.: yield or return for effort expended < the U-boats … shifted to fields where the pickings were easier — J.P.Baxter > 2.: a soft brick or one not fully burned