prune

¹

[ proon ]

noun

1. a variety of plum that dries without spoiling.
2. such a plum when dried.
3. any plum.

prune

²

[ proon ]

verb (used with object)

, pruned, prun·ing.

1. to cut or lop off (twigs, branches, or roots).
2. to cut or lop superfluous or undesired twigs, branches, or roots from; trim.
3. to rid or clear of (anything superfluous or undesirable).
4. to remove (anything considered superfluous or undesirable).

prune

³

[ proon ]

verb (used with object)

, pruned, prun·ing.

1. Archaic. to preen.

prune

¹

/ pruːn /

verb

1. an archaic word for preen 1

prune

²

/ pruːn /

noun

1. a purplish-black partially dried fruit of any of several varieties of plum tree
2. slang.
   a dull, uninteresting, or foolish person

prune

³

/ pruːn /

verb

1. to remove (dead or superfluous twigs, branches, etc) from (a tree, shrub, etc), esp by cutting off
2. to remove (anything undesirable or superfluous) from (a book, etc)

Derived Forms

• ˈprunable, adjective
• ˈpruner, noun

Other Words From

• prun·a·ble adjective
• prun·a·bil·i·ty [proo-n, uh, -, bil, -i-tee], noun
• prun·er noun
• un·prun·a·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of prune¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English prune, pruna, prum “plum, dried plum, prune,” from Old French prune, pronne, prume, from unrecorded Vulgar Latin prūna, neuter plural (taken as feminine singular) of Latin prūnum “plum,” from Greek proû(m)non, from a language of ancient Anatolia, where the tree and its fruit originated; plum

Origin of prune²

First recorded in 1400–50; from Middle English prouynen, from Middle French prougner, from Old French prooignier, proignier, poroindre “to cut back (vines); prune”; further origin uncertain; perhaps from unrecorded Vulgar Latin prōrotundiāre “to make round, cut in a rounded shape”; perhaps a variant of French provigner “to layer vines,” a derivative of provain “scion,” from Latin propāgin-, stem of propāgō; propagate; rotund ( def )

Origin of prune³

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English prunen, pruynen, proy(g)nen, from Old French poroign-, present stem of poroindre, equivalent to por- (from Latin pro-) + oindre “to anoint”; pro- ¹, unguent; preen ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of prune¹

C14: from Old French prune, from Latin prūnum plum, from Greek prounon

Origin of prune²

C15: from Old French proignier to clip, probably from provigner to prune vines, from provain layer (of a plant), from Latin propāgo a cutting

Idioms and Phrases

see full of beans , def. 2.

Example Sentences

Street trees are pruned only about every 15 years.

From Los Angeles Times

But for long, long decades before, Santa Clara County was “the Valley of Heart’s Delight,” a bee-and-blossom Eden of fragrant fruit: cherries, apricots, and mostly plums for prunes.

From Los Angeles Times

They preached about the effectiveness of “defensible space,” advocating that residents prune grasses, saplings and lower limbs immediately adjacent to their homes.

From Los Angeles Times

Researchers and producers have to discover the best way to plant, prune, treat, and harvest crops to ensure they can get them to consumers.

From Salon

As I felt when I saw this revival on Broadway, Furth’s book might have benefited from some judicious pruning.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• cut back
• shave
• shear
• shorten
• snip