n. 25B6; verb
I pruned the roses : CUT BACK, trim, thin, pinch back, clip, shear, pollard, top, dock.
prune lateral shoots of wisteria : CUT OFF, lop (off), chop off, clip, snip (off), nip off, dock.
staff numbers have been pruned : REDUCE, cut (back/down), pare (down), slim down, make reductions in, make cutbacks in, trim, decrease, diminish, downsize, axe, shrink; informal slash.
increase.