Synonyms

cut and run

Idioms

Clear out, escape, desert, as in He wished he could just cut and run. This term originally (about 1700) meant to cut a vessel's anchor cable and make sail at once. By the mid-1800s it was being used figuratively. Charles Dickens had it in Great Expectations (1861): “I'd give a shilling if they had cut and run.” Also see cut out, def. 7.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

How many cut and run following the 21 years Berkshire’s growth lagged the S&P 500 or the 11 years its value fell?

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

The one thing you shouldn’t do is cut and run, because one couple is in a lot of trouble for doing just that.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 22, 2025

In No 10, "we don't think there is a cut and run", a senior source says.

From BBC • Feb. 22, 2025

The pay package, he said, “is not actually cash, and I can’t cut and run, nor would I want to.”

From New York Times • Jun. 14, 2024

And the way she was looking at the guy...Yeah, was it any wonder that he decided it was best to cut and run?

From "Time Bomb" by Joelle Charbonneau

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

cut and run

Example Sentences

Related Words