prune

1 of 2

noun

ˈprün 

: a plum dried or capable of drying without fermentation

prune

2 of 2

verb

pruned; pruning

transitive verb

1

a

: to reduce especially by eliminating superfluous matter

pruned the text

prune the budget

b

: to remove as superfluous

prune away all ornamentation

2

: to cut off or cut back parts of for better shape or more fruitful growth

prune the branches

intransitive verb

: to cut away what is unwanted or superfluous

pruner noun

Synonyms

Verb

• bob
• clip
• crop
• cut
• cut back
• dock
• lop (off)
• nip
• pare
• poll
• shave
• shear
• snip
• trim

Examples of prune in a Sentence

Verb

She carefully pruned the hedge.

Those trees need to be pruned every year.

The students were asked to prune their essays.

The budget needs to be pruned.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Those rules included no smoking cigarettes, no drinking alcohol and drinking prune juice in the morning. —Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2025

Flowers are produced on old wood so the best time to prune is right after the early spring blooms disappear. —Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 12 Feb. 2025

Verb

If pruning for routine winter maintenance, select branches from your trimmings to bring inside. —Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2025

Feel free to prune it back as much as needed — even to within a few feet of the ground. —Tom MacCubbin, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, plum, from Latin prunum — more at plum

Verb

Middle English prouynen, probably ultimately from Old French prooignier, alteration of *porrooignier, from por- completely (from Latin pro-) + rooignier to cut, prune, from Vulgar Latin *rotundiare to cut around, from Latin rotundus round — more at pro-, rotund

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for prune

• boon
• brune
• coon
• croon
• dune
• goon
• hewn
• hoon
• june
• loon
• moon
• noon

Kids Definition

prune

1 of 2 noun

ˈprün 

: a dried plum

prune

2 of 2 verb

pruned; pruning

1

a

: to reduce by getting rid of matter that is not necessary or wanted

prune an essay

prune a budget

b

: to remove as unnecessary

2

: to cut off the parts of a woody plant that are dead or not wanted

prune the hedge

pruner noun

Medical Definition

prune

noun

ˈprün 

: a plum dried or capable of drying without fermentation and often used as a food and as a mild laxative