culled down

USAGE SUMMARY

The term 'culled down' is a valid and appropriate expression to use in written English.
It is used to describe the process of reducing or limiting something, usually in size. For example, "The team's project list had to be culled down from thirty ideas to ten that were deemed most feasible."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

After six rounds of spelling, the thirty-one semifinalists left standing were semi-ceremoniously culled down to a "maximum of twelve" for the Championship Finals, based on their performance on a computer spelling test and multiple-choice vocabulary questions.

The New Yorker

Any time somebody shares a link on your feed, the entire page gets analyzed and tagged by Worio, and added to its index (which currently is made up of about 100 million pages, culled down from one billion found by its crawler).

TechCrunch

From August 16 to 20, the designs were viewed at the Beijing Hotel and culled down to a list of 38.

Wikipedia

But I was intrigued by a man who would spend 11 days in a space station 220 miles above the earth... and return with 10,000 photographs which he has now culled down to 150 breathtaking pictures and assembled in this new book, Gaia, published by the prestigious Assouline company.

Huffington Post

The input gene universe for FuncAssociate consisted of all genes on our microarrays, which FuncAssociate culled down to a final set of 17,851 unique genes.

Plosone

For each replicate, approximately 10 seedlings were germinated in a 4 L pot in a greenhouse, culled down to one plant 2 weeks post-germination and transplanted to a 12 L pot 2 months post-germination.

BMC Biotechnology

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

52 human-written examples

Taking on roles that allow an actor to play someone "larger than life" is one kind of enjoyable challenge, but "with Gus, I calmed my spirit down and culled it down to the essence, [which allowed] him take me over, which was really special work for me," the actor said.

Huffington Post

So I've been culling down my current collection of memorabilia and taking a more critical look at the things I choose to keep.

Huffington Post

Rose says it's the job of Signature Staffing to cull down the candidates to the few who demonstrate both the job qualifications and the qualities to fit the company culture.

Huffington Post

These can cull down the searching time considerably.

WikiHow

"I skimmed through 20,000 pages of transcripts and culled  it down to very little," Densmore said.

Los Angeles Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "culled down" when you want to emphasize a selective reduction process, particularly when something is being chosen or removed based on specific criteria.

Common error

While "culled down" is acceptable in various contexts, avoid overusing it in very formal writing. Consider more precise alternatives like "reduced", "selected", or "narrowed" for a more polished tone.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "culled down" functions as a phrasal verb, typically used in the passive voice to describe something that has been reduced in number or size through a selective process. Ludwig AI confirms its validity.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

News & Media

45%

Science

35%

Wiki

20%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "culled down" is a phrasal verb used to describe the selective reduction of something, as validated by Ludwig AI. It's grammatically correct and commonly found in News & Media and Science contexts. While versatile, it may be best to consider formal synonyms in strictly formal writing. Examples from Ludwig highlight its use in scenarios involving lists, populations, and collections that undergo a deliberate reduction process.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

narrowed down

Suggests focusing on a smaller, more specific subset.

whittled down

Implies a gradual reduction, often through elimination of less desirable elements.

weeded out

Highlights the removal of undesirable elements, similar to removing weeds from a garden.

reduced

A general term for making something smaller.

winnowed

Implies separating valuable parts from less desirable ones.

pruned

Suggests removing unwanted or unnecessary elements to improve overall quality or efficiency.

filtered

Implies a process of passing something through a system to remove unwanted elements.

trimmed

Suggests removing excess or unnecessary parts.

selected

Highlights the act of choosing specific items from a larger group.

decreased

A general term for diminishing in size, quantity, or intensity.

FAQs

How can I use "culled down" in a sentence?

You can use "culled down" to describe the process of reducing a list or set to a smaller, more manageable size. For example, "The list of applicants was "narrowed down" after the initial screening process."

What is a synonym for "culled down"?

Synonyms for "culled down" include "reduced", "narrowed down", "selected", or "whittled down depending" on the specific nuance you want to convey.

Is it appropriate to use "culled down" in formal writing?

While "culled down" is generally acceptable, consider the formality of your writing. In very formal contexts, more precise alternatives like "reduced" or "selected" might be more suitable.

What's the difference between "culled down" and "reduced"?

"Culled down" implies a more selective and deliberate reduction, often based on specific criteria, whereas "reduced" is a more general term for making something smaller.