cut both ways
Have a mixed effect, have advantages and disadvantages. For example, Their solution will cut both ways; it'll take longer but is permanent. This metaphoric expression alludes to a double-edged sword. [c. 1600]
Words Nearby cut both ways
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
How to use cut both ways in a sentence
The two sentiments usually come bundled together, and cut both ways.
100 Years of Wrigley Field: Are the Chicago Cubs Horrible Because of the Ballpark? | Luke Epplin | March 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe tensions in the house cut both ways: what happens upstairs affects those below and vice-versa.
It was a miserable policy to be forced to adopt, for such restrictions upon trade inevitably cut both ways.
The Critical Period of American History | John FiskeHis sword had a double edge, and he habitually used it with a sweep that cut both ways.
Theodore Roosevelt and His Times | Harold HowlandIn fact, it was so--the misdeed was a double-edged blade which cut both ways.
The Lincoln Story Book | Henry L. Williams
It cut both ways, as often as not in point of fact, his experience told him.
Aletta | Bertram MitfordThey were little two-edged swords which might cut both ways.
Confessions of a Neurasthenic | William Taylor Marrs
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