pare
pronunciation
How to pronounce pare in British English:
UK [peə(r)]
How to pronounce pare in American English:
US [per]
-
- Verb:
- decrease gradually or bit by bit
- cut small bits or pare shavings from
- strip the skin off
- remove the edges from and cut down to the desired size
Word Origin
- pare (v.)
- "to trim by cutting close," c. 1300, from Old French parer "arrange, prepare; trim, adorn," and directly from Latin parare "make ready, prepare, furnish, provide, arrange, order; contrive, design, intend, resolve; procure, acquire, obtain, get; get with money, buy, purchase" (related to parere "produce, bring forth, give birth to"), from PIE *par-a-, suffixed form of root *pere- (1) "produce, procure, bring forward, bring forth," and derived words in diverse senses (cognates: Lithuanian pariu "to brood," Greek poris "calf, bull," Old High German farro, German Farre "bullock," Old English fearr "bull," Sanskrit prthukah "child, calf, young of an animal," Czech spratek "brat, urchin, premature calf"). Generalized meaning "to reduce something little by little" is from 1520s. Related: Pared; paring.
Example
- 1. Congress would probably pare back whatever I proposed anyway .
- 2. In fact , that 's how you pare things down .
- 3. Portugal faces a final vote in parliament today on its 2011 spending plan , which includes measures to pare its deficit .
- 4. Inflation is also running low in europe , where some countries are imposing harsh austerity measures to pare their budget gaps .
- 5. But labor standards and " living wages " have a larger impact on production costs that companies are always trying to pare .