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pick over

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pick something over

Fig. to look through something carefully, looking for something special. The shoppers who got here first picked everything over, and there is not much left. They picked over all the merchandise.

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pick over something

also pick something over

to examine a group of things carefully The boss picked over every word in Kelley's memo. She picked the strawberries over, selecting the largest ones.

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pick over

Sort out, examine item by item, as in Dad hates to pick over the beans one by one. This term is sometimes put as picked over, describing something that has already been selected from (as in They have almost nothing left; the stock of bathing suits has been picked over). [First half of 1800s]

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pick over

v.

1. To sort through something carefully: We picked over the grapes before buying them. Many of these archaeological sites have been picked over by tourists, and few artifacts remain.

2. To examine or analyze something carefully: The committee picked over the budget, looking for ways to save money.

See also: pick