culled; culling; culls
1
: to select from a group : choose
culled the best passages from the poet's work
Damaged fruits are culled before the produce is shipped.
2
: to reduce or control the size of (something, such as a herd) by removal (as by hunting or slaughter) of especially weak or sick individuals
The town issued hunting licenses in order to cull the deer population.
culling a herd of cattle
also
: to hunt or kill (individuals) for culling
culling diseased cows
culled hundreds of deer
culler
noun
: something rejected especially as being inferior or worthless
… how to separate good-looking pecans from culls.—
The Washington Post
The Washington PostExamples of cull in a Sentence
Verb
He culls his herd annually.
The town issued hunting licenses in order to cull the deer population.
Noun
the unbruised apples will be packed in bags, and the culls will be used for cider
Recent Examples on the Web
Scott Horsley, NPR, 12 Feb. 2025
One hundred thousand ducks were culled between January 20 and January 23 at Crescent Duck Farm in Aquebogue, New York, after the virus was detected there.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2025
Mike Wall, Space.com, 14 Feb. 2025
There are another 100 redundancies on the way, following a cull last year which saw 250 staff lose their jobs.
—Tim Spiers, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cull
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Verb
Egg prices surged Egg prices saw their biggest jump in nearly a decade last month, rising more than 15% after avian flu forced egg farmers to cull millions of laying hens in December.
—Scott Horsley, NPR, 12 Feb. 2025
One hundred thousand ducks were culled between January 20 and January 23 at Crescent Duck Farm in Aquebogue, New York, after the virus was detected there.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2025
Noun
The new layoffs therefore represent a roughly 10% cull.
—Mike Wall, Space.com, 14 Feb. 2025
There are another 100 redundancies on the way, following a cull last year which saw 250 staff lose their jobs.
—Tim Spiers, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cull
Cite this Entry
“Cull.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cull. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
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