cutdown

American  

[kuht-doun] / ˈkʌtˌdaʊn /

noun

1. reduction; decrease; diminution.

   a cutdown in sales.

2. Surgery. the incision of a superficial vein in order to effect direct insertion of a catheter.

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adjective

1. reduced in size.

2. abridged or condensed.

   They televised a cutdown version of the movie.

Etymology

Origin of cutdown

First recorded in 1885–90; noun use of verb phrase cut down

Example Sentences

Some children are handed a cutdown club and a ball and that is literally all it takes.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

So with cutdown day near, the sideline might reveal more about their plans for a player than performance in the game.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 22, 2025

Five days after CBS’s late-night massacre, a two-minute social media cutdown of a recent interview made it appear that Leno implied Colbert and the rest had nobody to blame but themselves.

From Salon • Jul. 31, 2025

The 6-5, 313-pound Brown, who played at Ole Miss, spent last year on Cincinnati’s injured reserve and then was waived by the Bengals in the cutdown to 53.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 4, 2023

It somehow or other reminds one of that appalling series of cutdown "Classics," so largely recommended to a public that is seduced to run and read.

From Confessions of a Book-Lover by Egan, Maurice Francis