To Whittle Something Down
To Shave Something Down, To Reduce Something
transitive verb, godan verb
Because the hiragana ends with an う sound, you know this word is a verb. The kanji itself means whittle down and the verb vocab version is to whittle something down, to shave something down, and to reduce something.
This verb is transitive, meaning you're whittling something down, like a piece of wood, or reducing something, like your expenses.
To whittle something down or not to whittle something down. Will have to take it on a case (けず) by case basis.
木の枝を削ってはしを作りました。
I whittled down a tree branch to make chopsticks.
プロジェクトリーダーに予算を削られて備品が買えない。
The project leader reduced my budget and I can't buy any equipment.
歯を削る音ってのは、私にとっては最も不快な音の一つだね。
The sound of shaving down teeth is one of the most unpleasant sounds to me.