weed out

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weed out (third-person singular simple present weeds out, present participle weeding out, simple past and past participle weeded out)

1. (idiomatic) To remove (unwanted elements) from a group.

   To weed out problem users, watch new people's behavior.

   • 1557 February 13 (Gregorian calendar), Thomas Tusser, A Hundreth Good Pointes of Husbandrie, London: […] Richard Tottel, →OCLC; republished London: […] Robert Triphook, […], and William Sancho, […], 1810, →OCLC:

     In May get a weed-hook, a crotch and a glove,
     And weed out such weeds, as the corn doth not love

   • 2023 March 6, Alexis Jones, Megan Schaltegger, “These Tinder Conversation Starters Actually Work, According To Dating Experts”, in Women's Health‎^[1]:

     “I like the question, ‘Where can I take you/where will you take me on our first date?’ because that’s the point of the app and you’re already both attracted to each other. It weeds out people who aren’t actually interested in meeting up and are using the app passively,” Hoggard Wagley says.

• weedout (noun)

• outweed