pare /peə $ per/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: parer 'to prepare, make neat' , from Latin parare 'to prepare' ]
1 . to cut off the outer layer of something, using a sharp knife:
Pare the rind from the fruit.
2 . to reduce the amount, number, or size of something as much as you can:
The firm has not been able to pare costs fast enough to match competitors.
The country’s defences have been pared to the bone (=reduced as far as possible) .
pare something ↔ down phrasal verb
to reduce something, especially by making a lot of small reductions:
The list was pared down for the final interviews.
—pared-down adjective :
Even in its pared-down form, the contract was unacceptable.