thin the herd

Verb

thin the herd (third-person singular simple present thins the herd, present participle thinning the herd, simple past and past participle thinned the herd)

1. (idiomatic) to cull, to reduce the size of a group
   • Early on, if we came into a pot we came in for about three times the big blind because we generally wanted to thin the herd. Now we don't have to worry about that so much, for the herd will thin itself. It's smaller to begin with, since three or four players are gone, plus we're starting to get...2006, John Vorhaus, Killer Poker Online/2: Advanced Strategies For Crushing The Internet Game, Kensington Publishing, →ISBN, page 140
   • “If we have a chance, catch one of them out alone, we'll take it, thin the herd a little.” Harv snorted. “Herd? A cripple, a woman, and a coward. No herd to thin there. I'd like to keep that woman alive for a while, though.2010, Mary Connealy, The Wildflower Bride, Barbour Publishing, →ISBN, page 291
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see thin, the, herd.