pinch out

pinch out (third-person singular simple present pinches out, present participle pinching out, simple past and past participle pinched out)

1. To remove the shoots of a plant:
   1. the leading shoot in order to encourage a bushy habit
   2. a plant's side shoots
2. (mining, geology) for a distinct body of rock between underlying and overlying strata, to thin out and come to an end, so that the strata above come to lie on the strata below.

pinch out (plural pinch outs)

1. (mining, geology) A volume of rock or oil trapped or isolated between strata that have pinched it out.