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• cut-and-dried
  cut-and-dried

  adjective

  prepared or settled in advance; not needing much thought or discussion.
• cut and dried
  cut and dried

  Ready-made, predetermined and not changeable. For example, The procedure is not quite cut and dried—there's definitely room for improvisation. This expression originally alluded to herbs for sale in a shop, as opposed to fresh, growing herbs. [c. 1900]

cut-and-dried

American  

[kuht-n-drahyd] / ˈkʌt nˈdraɪd /

Or cut-and-dry

adjective

1. prepared or settled in advance; not needing much thought or discussion.

   a cut-and-dried decision.

2. lacking in originality or spontaneity; routine; boring.

   a lecture that was cut-and-dried.

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cut and dried Idioms  

1. Ready-made, predetermined and not changeable. For example, The procedure is not quite cut and dried—there's definitely room for improvisation. This expression originally alluded to herbs for sale in a shop, as opposed to fresh, growing herbs. [c. 1900]

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Etymology

Origin of cut-and-dried

First recorded in 1700–10

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cut-and-dried cut and dried

While most employers will pause a PIP’s requirements because employees can’t address their performance issues when they aren’t working, Berke said, it isn’t a cut-and-dried strategy for workers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

But as Justice Sonia Sotomayor explains, the case is also fairly cut-and-dried based on a Supreme Court interpretation of the statute dating back to 1950.

From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026

“It isn’t going to be a cut-and-dried outcome.”

From Barron's ● Dec. 15, 2025

Because there isn’t a cut-and-dried solution in the context of “Squid Game 2,” it demands conversation, which can be important in and of itself.

From Salon ● Dec. 31, 2024

The infraction was so cut-and-dried, and my writing so plain and direct, that I was about to explode from frustration.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

It's not as complicated as assessing whether a footballer has dived – this is a cut and dried thing that anybody can enter a debate into.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

But the decision wasn’t as cut and dried for Apple.

From Barron's ● Jun. 18, 2026

Doctors say that real-life pregnancy complications are rarely so cut and dried.

From Salon ● Dec. 5, 2023

While some cases will be pretty cut and dried, many will require ESD staff to contact claimants for more information, said JR Richards, director of ESD’s unemployment insurance customer-support division.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 7, 2023

I imagined the cedars that were now cut and dried and split into house shingles.

From "Beyond the Bright Sea" by Lauren Wolk