Dictionary

separate the wheat from the chaff en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio

Etymology

The figurative sense is by extension from the literal sense, which is threshing. Because threshing has been an important activity for humans for thousands of years, it is well represented both in folk wisdom and (relatedly) in the Bible; for example, Matthew 3:12.

Meanings

1. (idiomatic, intransitive) To select only that which is of value.
   • As a punishment, Zhemao and her affiliated accounts were suspended permanently. Most of her articles were deleted based on community consensus. Some Wikipedians even wrote to experts, seeking help to separate the wheat from the chaff. 2022 July 13, Rachel Cheung, “A Bored Chinese Housewife Spent Years Falsifying Russian History on Wikipedia”, in Vice, archived from the original on 09 Mar 2026:

Forms

Relateds

wheat and tares

Synonyms

winnow the wheat from the chaff · winnow grain from chaff · sort the wheat from the chaff · winnow

Translations (29)

el διαχωρίζω την ήρα από το στάρι (to select only that which is of value) · pl oddzielić ziarno od plew (to select only that which is of value) · it separare il buono dal cattivo (to select only that which is of value) · cs oddělit zrno od plev (to select only that which is of value) · ru му́хи отде́льно, котле́ты отде́льно (to select only that which is of value) · pl oddzielać ziarno od plew (to select only that which is of value) · hu elválasztja/szétválasztja az ocsút a búzától (to select only that which is of value) · is skilja hismið frá kjarnanum (to select only that which is of value) · de die Spreu vom Weizen trennen (to select only that which is of value) · nl het kaf van het koren scheiden (to select only that which is of value) · es separar el trigo de la paja (to select only that which is of value) · ru отдели́ть а́гнцев от ко́злищ (to select only that which is of value) · cmn 分清良莠 (to select only that which is of value) · sv skilja agnarna från vetet (to select only that which is of value) · ja もみがらから麦をより分ける (to select only that which is of value) · ru отделя́ть зёрна от пле́вел (to select only that which is of value) · pt separar o trigo do joio (to select only that which is of value) · ga an grán a scaradh ón lóchán (to select only that which is of value) · fi erottaa jyvät akanoista (to select only that which is of value) · it separare il grano dalla pula (to select only that which is of value) · es apartar el grano de la paja (to select only that which is of value) · ja 良いものと悪いものを分ける (to select only that which is of value) · nb skille klinten fra hveten (to select only that which is of value) · da skille klinten fra hveden (to select only that which is of value) · he לָבוּר אֶת הַבָּר מִן הַתֶּבֶן (to select only that which is of value) · pt separar o joio do trigo (to select only that which is of value) · fr séparer le bon grain de l'ivraie (to select only that which is of value) · es separar la paja del trigo (to select only that which is of value) · ru отдели́ть зёрна от пле́вел (to select only that which is of value)