Winnow

5 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Winnow \Win"now\, v. i.
     To separate chaff from grain.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           Winnow not with every wind.              --Ecclus. v.
                                                    9.


     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Winnow \Win"now\ (w[i^]n"n[-o]), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Winnowed}
     (w[i^]n"n[-o]d); p. pr. & vb. n. {Winnowing}.] [OE. windewen,
     winewen, AS. windwian; akin to Goth. winpjan (in comp.),
     winpi-skauro a fan, L. ventilare to fan, to winnow; cf. L.
     wannus a fan for winnowing, G. wanne, OHG. wanna. [root]131.
     See {Wind} moving air, and cf. {Fan}., n., {Ventilate}.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. To separate, and drive off, the chaff from by means of
        wind; to fan; as, to winnow grain.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Ho winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing floor.
                                                    --Ruth. iii.
                                                    2.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To sift, as for the purpose of separating falsehood from
        truth; to separate, as bad from good.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Winnow well this thought, and you shall find
              This light as chaff that flies before the wind.
                                                    --Dryden.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. To beat with wings, or as with wings.[Poetic]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Now on the polar winds; then with quick fan
              Winnows the buxom air.                --Milton.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  winnow
       n : the act of separating grain from chaff; "the winnowing was
           done by women" [syn: {winnowing}, {sifting}]
       v 1: separate from chaff; "She stood there winnowing grain all
            day in the field" [syn: {fan}]
       2: blow on; "The wind was winnowing her hair"
       3: treat by exposure to a current of air so that waste matter
          is eliminated; "winnow grain"
       4: remove by a current of air; "winnow chaff"

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  123 Moby Thesaurus words for "winnow":
     aerate, air, air out, air-condition, air-cool, airify, analyze,
     appraise, assess, bolt, catalog, categorize, choose out, clarifier,
     clarify, class, classify, clear, colander, comb, contradistinguish,
     cordon, cordon off, cradle, cribble, cross-ventilate, cull,
     cull out, decide between, decrassify, demarcate, demark, depurate,
     differentiate, discriminate, distill, distinguish, divide,
     draw the line, edulcorate, elute, essentialize, evaluate, excerpt,
     extract, factor, fan, filter, filtrate, freshen, gauge, ghettoize,
     gin, glean, group, handpick, identify, insulate, isolate,
     keep apart, keep aside, lay aside, leach, lixiviate, lixiviator,
     make a selection, mark the interface, oxygenate, oxygenize,
     percolate, percolator, pick, pick out, purifier, purify, put aside,
     quarantine, rectify, refine, refiner, refinery, refresh, riddle,
     rocker, ruffle, screen, screen out, seclude, segregate, select,
     separate, set a limit, set apart, set aside, set off, sever,
     severalize, sieve, sieve out, sift, sift out, sifter, single out,
     sort, sort out, spiritualize, split hairs, strain, strainer,
     subdivide, sublimate, sublime, subtilize, thrash, thrash out,
     thresh, try, ventilate, weigh, wind, winnowing basket,
     winnowing fan, winnowing machine
  
  

From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:

  Winnow
     Corn was winnowed, (1.) By being thrown up by a shovel against
     the wind. As a rule this was done in the evening or during the
     night, when the west wind from the sea was blowing, which was a
     moderate breeze and fitted for the purpose. The north wind was
     too strong, and the east wind came in gusts. (2.) By the use of
     a fan or van, by which the chaff was blown away (Ruth 3:2; Isa.
     30:24; Jer. 4:11, 12; Matt. 3:12).