cut it
Idioms-
Also, cut that . Stop, as in I won't stand for that—cut it! or If you don't cut that, I'll tell . [ Slang ; first half of 1800s] Also see cut it out .
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Manage, tolerate, as in I don't know how he can cut it . [ Slang ; c. 1900]
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Be effective, prove satisfactory, as in She's getting old and can no longer cut it . [Late 1900s] For a synonym see cut the mustard . Also see the subsequent entries beginning with cut it .
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.
“I guess the moral of the story is let your medical bills go to a debt collector, ‘cause then they’ll cut it down,” she says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
The landmark on Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland was targeted on 28 September 2023 by Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers, who travelled during a storm from their homes in Cumbria to cut it down.
From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026
Dennis Radtke, chairman of the CDU's employee wing, called Sunday's vote a "watershed moment" and said that "the usual platitudes about a 'bitter evening' and the need for analysis won't cut it".
From Barron's ● Sep. 7, 2026
When a seller lists a home for sale privately, they can determine their asking price, test it out, and then cut it if necessary, without making every price adjustment public.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 27, 2026
She cut it up into nice big wedges while I poured the coffee.
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
