Dictionary

cherry-pick en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio

Etymology

A metaphor, from the idea of picking through a bowl of cherries and seeking the best for oneself, or the idea of picking off the cherries for oneself from a cake or dessert.

Meanings

1. (idiomatic) To pick out the best or most desirable items from a list or group, especially to obtain some advantage or to present something in the best possible light.
   • Screeners can help you cherry-pick a promising group of stocks that meet your exact specifications. 2005, “The PC Way to Pick Winners”, in Kiplinger's Personal Finance, volume 59, number 4, page 44:
   • "We're not offering you a chance to cherry-pick the Caerphilly Zoo to fill in the gaps in your own collection. 2008, Donna Andrews, The Penguin Who Knew Too Much, page 98:
   • The situation became more acute as road competition began to grow during the 1930s. A national road network was built, and road hauliers could cherry-pick the most profitable movements. 2023 March 8, David Clough, “The long road that led to Beeching”, in RAIL, number 978, pages 37–38:
   • In time The Simpsons would, indeed, resort to spoofing such decidedly non-spooktacular fare like E.T and Mr. And Mrs. Smith (both in “Treehouse Of Horror XVIII”) but in 1992 the field was wide-open and the show could cherry-pick the most iconic and beloved fright fare of all time. 2012 April 29, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Treehouse of Horror III” (season 4, episode 5; originally aired 10/29/1992)”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name):
2. (broadly, rhetoric) To select only evidence which supports an argument, and reject or ignore contradictory evidence.
   • 2001, Ian St. John in sci.environment You are *asking* for a specific *subset* of the data to *prove* a specific theory. That is 'cherry picking'. It is no more valid to 'cherry pick' data to disprove global warming than it is to 'cherry pick' data to prove it. That is *science*. You *must* deal with the entire data set. What part of this is not clear?
   • From all the available statistics, the politician cherry-picked only those that backed up his ideas.
   • So it's possible to 'cherry pick' only the evidence that supports a position and ignore the rest. To the reader who does not know about the rest of the evidence, it may seem like a strong case. The whole body of evidence must be considered. 2008, Warren Davies, How to Study Psychology, page 80:
   • The reason for this concentration is to attempt to alleviate the problems of fragmentation which usually accompany the study of retailing, particularly at the end of the early period, and has so often happened in the past, to curtail the temptation to 'cherry-pick' the best evidence from a wide, but not necessarily related, area. 1999, Nicholas Alexander, Gary Akehurst, The Emergence of Modern Retailing, 1750-1950, page 38:
   • Yes, I do think in principle it is a good idea to have clearing houses where data is assessed and has as objective an account as possible given of the data because of the tendency of all organisations to cherry-pick those studies which may support a pre-existing position. 2006, Scientific developments relating to the Abortion Act 1967: twelfth report of session 2006-07, Vol. 2: Oral and written evidence, page 32:
3. (US, idiomatic) To position oneself near the opponent's goal to attempt to receive an errant or intentional pass for an easy score, as in basketball or versions of soccer where offsides are not enforced.
4. (US, idiomatic) To broadcast selected programming from another network.
   • Those stations that will send CNN tapes of their local and regional news for CNN to cherry-pick from, in turn will be allowed to cherry-pick themselves. 1980, Television/radio age, volume 28, page 80:
5. In source control, to commit selected changes from one branch to another.

Forms

Relateds

low-hanging fruit · contextomy · cherry picker

Synonyms

cull

Translations (26)

mi tīpako (to select only the best from a range of options) · de sich die Rosinen herauspicken (to select only the best from a range of options) · fr trier sur le volet (to select only the best from a range of options) · nl alleen de rozijnen uitpikken (to select only the best from a range of options) · hu mazsoláz (to select only the best from a range of options) · hu szemezget (to select only the best from a range of options) · fa گلچین کردن (to select only the best from a range of options) · es entresacar (to select only the best from a range of options) · fi poimia rusinat pullasta (to select only the best from a range of options) · es escoger la crema (to select only the best from a range of options) · fi kärkkyä (in sports, to position oneself near the opponent's goal) · pl wybrać najlepsze rzeczy (to select only the best from a range of options) · es escoger selectivamente (to select only the best from a range of options) · hu kimazsoláz (to select only the best from a range of options) · pl wybrać obserwacje pasujące do tezy (to select only evidence which supports an argument, and reject or ignore contradictory evidence) · mi tīpakopako (to select only the best from a range of options) · nl de krenten uit de pap halen (to select only the best from a range of options) · sv plocka russinen ur kakan (to select only the best from a range of options) · pl ustawiać się w pobliżu bramki przeciwnika (in sports, to position oneself near the opponent's goal) · pl wybierać obserwacje pasujące do tezy (to select only evidence which supports an argument, and reject or ignore contradictory evidence) · pt escolher a dedo (to select only the best from a range of options) · hu mazsolázgat (to select only the best from a range of options) · pl wybierać najlepsze rzeczy (to select only the best from a range of options) · pl ustawić się w pobliżu bramki przeciwnika (in sports, to position oneself near the opponent's goal) · es seleccionar la cereza (to select only the best from a range of options) · es mirar con lentes de aumento (to select only evidence which supports an argument, and reject or ignore contradictory evidence)