From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishthin the ranksthin the ranksLESSif something thins the ranks of a group of people, there are fewer of them as a result of it Illness had thinned our ranks. → thin
Examples from the Corpus
thin the ranks• But the sector suffered like chemicals and shipping from cyclical downturns in world demand which thinned the ranks.• Higher prices have thinned the ranks of prospective home owners. 