winnow

Noun

• the act of separating grain from chaff
  • the winnowing was done by women
    

Verb

• blow away or off with a current of air
  • winnow chaff
    

• select desirable parts from a group or list
  • cull out the interesting letters from the poet's correspondence
    
  • winnow the finalists from the long list of applicants
    

• blow on
  • The wind was winnowing her hair
    
  • the wind winnowed the grass
    

• separate the chaff from by using air currents
  • She stood there winnowing chaff all day in the field
    

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  winnowing , sifting , cull out , fan