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whit·tle

(wĭtl, hwĭtl)

v. whit·tled, whit·tling, whit·tles

v.tr.

a. To cut small bits or pare shavings from (a piece of wood).

b. To fashion or shape in this way: whittle a toy boat.

2. To reduce or eliminate gradually: whittled down the debt by making small payments.

v.intr.

To cut or shape wood with a knife.

[From Middle English whyttel, knife, variant of thwitel, from thwiten, to whittle, from Old English thwītan, to strike, whittle down.]

whittler n.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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