cutoff

American  

[kuht-awf, -of] / ˈkʌtˌɔf, -ˌɒf /

noun

• cutoffs
  plural

1. an act or instance of cutting off.

2. something that cuts off.

3. a road, passage, etc., that leaves another, usually providing a shortcut.

   Let's take the cutoff to Baltimore.

4. a new and shorter channel formed in a river by the water cutting across a bend in its course.

5. a point, time, or stage serving as the limit beyond which something is no longer effective, applicable, or possible.

6. cutoffs, Also cut-offs shorts made by cutting the legs off a pair of trousers, especially jeans, above the knees and often leaving the cut edges ragged.

7. Accounting. a selected point at which records are considered complete for the purpose of settling accounts, taking inventory, etc.

8. Baseball. an infielder's interception of a ball thrown from the outfield in order to relay it to home plate or keep a base runner from advancing.

9. Machinery. arrest of the steam moving the pistons of an engine, usually occurring before the completion of a stroke.

10. Electronics. (in a vacuum tube) the minimum grid potential preventing an anode current.

11. Rocketry. the termination of propulsion, either by shutting off the propellant flow or by stopping the combustion of the propellant.

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adjective

1. being or constituting the limit or ending.

   a cutoff date for making changes.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• cutoffs
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cutoff

First recorded in 1735–45; noun use of verb phrase cut off

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cutoff cutoffs

That means that any cutoff, which trade experts think will be unlikely, would come at a cost to the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026

The challenge is that there is no simple age cutoff.

From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2026

Looking back at photos from the era, with their feathered hair and cutoff jeans, is more than an exercise in nostalgia.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026

A competing interpretation has emerged of the preliminary report's most puzzling detail: the brief movement of both fuel-control switches to "cutoff" shortly after take-off.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

“It’s outlandish that our arbitrary choice of cutoff dates is causing these long-lasting effects, and no one seems to care about them.”

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

In recent years, the number of users sharing personal stories of how cutoffs have improved their mental health has skyrocketed.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026

TikTok has implemented 60-minute daily screen time limits for users under 18 and notification cutoffs based on age groups.

From Barron's ● Feb. 9, 2026

His denim cutoffs, which crept up in length over the years, were known as Bobby Shorts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 10, 2026

The fire burned more than 2,600 acres and it caused widespread evacuations and power cutoffs, prompting Van Dyke to flee his home, Variety reported.

From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2024

A pink face, a brown face, yellow hair, red hair, cutoffs everywhere.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby