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cutting

[kuht-ing]
See more synonyms for cutting on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the act of a person or thing that cuts.
  2. something cut, cut off, or cut out.
  3. Horticulture. a piece, as a root, stem, or leaf, cut from a plant and used for propagation.
  4. something made by cutting, as a recording.
  5. a form of repetitive self-injury in which a person deliberately cuts the skin, as to cope with stress or negative emotions.
  6. Chiefly British. a clipping from a newspaper, magazine, etc.
  7. British. a trenchlike excavation, especially through a hill, as one made in constructing a highway.
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adjective
  1. able to cut or slice: a cutting blade.
  2. piercing, as a wind.
  3. wounding the feelings severely; sarcastic.
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Origin of cutting

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at cut, -ing1, -ing2
Related formscut·ting·ly, adverbcut·ting·ness, nounnon·cut·ting, adjective, nounself-cut·ting, adjective

Synonyms

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10. caustic, biting, mordant, acid, sardonic.

cut

[kuht]
verb (used with object), cut, cut·ting.
  1. to penetrate with or as if with a sharp-edged instrument or object: He cut his finger.
  2. to divide with or as if with a sharp-edged instrument; sever; carve: to cut a rope.
  3. to detach with or as if with a sharp-edged instrument; separate from the main body; lop off: to cut a slice from a loaf of bread.
  4. to hew or saw down; fell: to cut timber.
  5. to trim by clipping, shearing, paring, or pruning: to cut hair.
  6. to mow; reap; harvest: to cut grain.
  7. to abridge or shorten; edit by omitting a part or parts: to cut a speech.
  8. to repeatedly inflict injury on (oneself) by deliberately cutting the skin, as to cope with stress or negative emotions: Some teenagers cut themselves to stop their emotional pain.
  9. to lower, reduce, diminish, or curtail (sometimes followed by down): to cut prices.
  10. to dilute; make less thick: to cut wine.
  11. to dissolve: That detergent cuts grease effectively.
  12. to intersect; cross: One line cuts another at right angles.
  13. Informal. to cease; discontinue (often followed by out): Cut the kidding. Let's cut out the pretense.
  14. to stop; halt the running of, as a liquid or an engine (often followed by off): The pilot cut the engines and glided in for a landing. Cut off the hot water.
  15. to dilute or adulterate (a drug) by mixing it with other substances.
  16. to grow (a tooth or teeth) through the gum: The baby is cutting his teeth.
  17. to type, write, or draw on (a stencil) for mimeographing.
  18. to make or fashion by cutting, as a statue, jewel, or garment.
  19. Glassmaking. to produce a pattern (in glass) by grinding and polishing.
  20. to refuse to recognize socially; shun ostentatiously: Her friends began to cut her as the season progressed.
  21. to strike sharply, as with a whip.
  22. to absent oneself from: allowed to cut three classes per semester.
  23. Movies, Television.
    1. to stop (a scene or shot being filmed).
    2. to edit (a film).
  24. Computers. to remove (selected text, images, etc.) from a file to store in temporary memory until pasted elsewhere.Compare copy(def 15), paste(def 13).
  25. to wound the feelings of severely.
  26. Cards.
    1. to divide (a pack of cards) at random into two or more parts, by removing cards from the top.
    2. to take (a card) from a deck.
  27. to record a selection on (a phonograph record or tape); make a recording of.
  28. to castrate or geld.
  29. Sports. to hit (a ball) with either the hand or some instrument so as to change its course and often to cause it to spin.
  30. to hollow out; excavate; dig: to cut a trench.
  31. Cricket. to strike and send off (a ball) in front of the batsman, and parallel to the wicket.
  32. Slang. to be a nonplaying dealer, manager, or supervisor of (a card game, crap game, or other gambling game) in return for a percentage of the money bet or sometimes for a fee.
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verb (used without object), cut, cut·ting.
  1. to penetrate or divide something, as with a sharp-edged instrument; make an incision: The scissors cut well.
  2. to admit of being cut: Butter cuts easily.
  3. to repeatedly inflict self-injury by deliberately cutting the skin.
  4. to pass, go, or come, especially in the most direct way (usually followed by across, through, in, etc.): to cut across an empty lot.
  5. Movies, Television.
    1. to shift suddenly from one shot to another: Cut to the barroom interior.
    2. to stop the action of a scene: used as a command by a director.
  6. to make a sudden or sharp turn in direction; change direction suddenly; swerve: We cut to the left to avoid hitting the child.
  7. to strike a person, animal, etc., sharply, as with a whip.
  8. to wound the feelings severely: His criticism cut deep.
  9. (of the teeth) to grow through the gums.
  10. Computers. to remove selected text, images, etc., from a file for storage in temporary memory until pasted elsewhere.Compare copy(def 17), paste(def 14).
  11. Cards. to cut the cards.
  12. Informal. to leave hastily: to cut for the hills.
  13. (of a horse) to interfere.
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adjective
  1. that has been subjected to cutting; divided into pieces by cutting; detached by cutting: cut flowers.
  2. fashioned by cutting; having the surface shaped or ornamented by grinding, polishing, or the like: cut diamonds.
  3. reduced by or as if by cutting: cut whiskey; cut prices.
  4. Botany. incised; cleft.
  5. castrated; gelded.
  6. Slang. drunk.
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noun
  1. the act of cutting; a stroke or a blow, as with a knife, whip, etc.
  2. the result of cutting, as an incision, wound, passage, or channel.
  3. a piece cut off: a cut of a pie.
  4. Informal. a share, especially of earnings or profits: His agent's cut is 20 percent.
  5. a haircut, often with a styling.
  6. a reduction in price, salary, etc.
  7. the manner or fashion in which anything is cut: the cut of a dress.
  8. style; manner; kind: We need a man of his cut in this firm.
  9. a passage or course straight across or through: a cut through the woods.
  10. an excision or omission of a part.
  11. a part or quantity of text deleted or omitted.
  12. a quantity cut, especially of lumber.
  13. a refusal to recognize an acquaintance.
  14. an act, speech, etc., that wounds the feelings.
  15. an engraved plate or block of wood used for printing.
  16. a printed picture or illustration.
  17. an absence, as from a school class, at which attendance is required.
  18. Butchering. part of an animal usually cut as one piece.
  19. Cards. a cutting of the cards.
  20. Sports.
    1. the act of cutting a ball.
    2. the spin imparted.
  21. Fencing. a blow with the edge of the blade instead of the tip.
  22. one of several pieces of straw, paper, etc., used in drawing lots.
  23. Movies, Television.
    1. the instantaneous or gradual transition from one shot or scene to another in an edited film.
    2. an edited version of a film.Compare rough cut, final cut.
    3. an act or instance of editing a film.
  24. an individual song, musical piece, or other similar material on a record or tape.
  25. any product of the fractional distillation of petroleum.
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Verb Phrases
  1. cut across, to precede or go beyond considerations of; transcend: The new tax program cuts across party lines.
  2. cut down,
    1. Also cut down on.to lessen; decrease: to cut down on between-meal snacks.
    2. to strike and cause to fall: The first force to attempt an advance was swiftly cut down.
    3. to destroy, kill, or disable: The hurricane cut down everything in its path.
    4. to remodel, remake, or reduce in size, as a garment: She had her old coat cut down to fit her daughter.
  3. cut in,
    1. to move or thrust oneself, a vehicle, etc., abruptly between others: A speeding car cut in and nearly caused an accident.
    2. to interpose; interrupt: to cut in with a remark.
    3. Informal.to interrupt a dancing couple in order to dance with one of them.
    4. to blend (shortening) into flour by means of a knife.
  4. cut off,
    1. to intercept.
    2. to interrupt.
    3. to stop suddenly; discontinue.
    4. to halt the operation of; turn off.
    5. to shut off or shut out.
    6. to disinherit.
    7. to sever; separate.
  5. cut out,
    1. to omit; delete; excise.
    2. to oust and replace a rival; supplant.
    3. to part an animal from a herd.
    4. to plan; arrange: He has his work cut out for him.
    5. to move out of one's lane of traffic.
    6. Also cut on out.Slang.to leave suddenly.
    7. Informal.to refrain from; stop: to cut out smoking.
    8. (of an engine, machine, etc.) to stop running.
  6. cut up,
    1. to cut into pieces or sections.
    2. to lacerate; wound.
    3. to distress mentally; injure.
    4. Informal.to play pranks; misbehave: They got scolded for cutting up in church.
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Idioms
  1. a cut above, somewhat superior to another (thing, person, etc.) in some respect: Her work is a cut above anyone else's.
  2. cut a caper/figure, to perform a spirited, brief, outlandish dance step, especially as a result of euphoria.
  3. cut a figure,
    1. cut a caper.
    2. to give a certain impression of oneself: He cut a distinguished figure in his tuxedo.
  4. cut and run,
    1. Nautical.to cut the anchor cable and set sail, as in an emergency.
    2. to leave as hurriedly as possible; flee.
  5. cut back,
    1. to shorten by cutting off the end.
    2. to curtail or discontinue: Steel production has been cut back in recent months.
    3. to return to an earlier episode or event, as in the plot of a novel.
    4. Football.to reverse direction suddenly by moving in the diagonally opposite course.
  6. cut both ways, to have, produce, or result in advantages as well as disadvantages: This decision will inevitably cut both ways.
  7. cut/chop down to size, to reduce the stature or importance of: The novelist had a big ego until the critics cut him down to size.
  8. cut it, Informal.
    1. to achieve or maintain a desired level of performance: The aging football player decided he couldn't cut it any longer and retired.
    2. to be effective or successful; satisfy a need.
  9. cut it out, Informal. to stop doing something: That hurts! Cut it out!
  10. cut no ice. ice(def 25).
  11. cut out for, fitted for; capable of: He wasn't cut out for military service.
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Origin of cut

1175–1225; Middle English cutten, kytten, kitten, Old English *cyttan; akin to Old Swedish kotta to cut, Old Norse kuti little knife
Related formshalf-cut, adjectivemis·cut, verb, mis·cut, mis·cut·ting.out·cut, verb (used with object), out·cut, out·cut·ting.re·cut, verb, re·cut, re·cut·ting.well-cut, adjective

Synonyms

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1. gash, slash, slit, lance. 2. cleave, sunder, bisect. 7. abbreviate, curtail.

Synonym study

2. Cut, chop, hack, hew refer to giving a sharp blow or stroke. Cut is a general word for this: to cut the grass. To chop is to cut by giving repeated blows with something sharp, as an ax. To chop and to hew are practically interchangeable, but hew suggests keeping to a definite purpose: to chop or hew down a tree; to hew out a clearing. To hack is to cut or chop roughly and unevenly: to hack off a limb.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

barbed, scathing, incisive, raw, trenchant, pointed, piercing, sarcastic, sardonic, caustic, biting, acerbic, penetrating, crisp, clear-cut, probing, sharp, acid, bitter, wounding

Examples from the Web for cutting

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He had hung up his buck at the camp and was cutting strips from it for his supper.

    The Trail Book

    Mary Austin

  • "You'd better," he said, with quiet decision, cutting short my hesitation.

  • The boy on Lucretia is jabbing her with the spurs, and she's cutting up.

    Thoroughbreds

    W. A. Fraser

  • Diablo was cutting down the lead the other two held over him, galloping like a demon.

    Thoroughbreds

    W. A. Fraser

  • "I must find my friend," he said, cutting the garrulous man short.

    Thoroughbreds

    W. A. Fraser

British Dictionary definitions for cutting

cutting

noun
  1. a piece cut off from the main part of something
  2. horticulture
    1. a method of vegetative propagation in which a part of a plant, such as a stem or leaf, is induced to form its own roots
    2. a part separated for this purpose
  3. Also called (esp US and Canadian): clipping an article, photograph, etc, cut from a newspaper or other publication
  4. the editing process by which a film is cut and made
  5. an excavation in a piece of high land for a road, railway, etc, enabling it to remain at approximately the same level
  6. Irish informal sharp-wittednessthere is no cutting in him
  7. (modifier) designed for or adapted to cutting; edged; sharpa cutting tool
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adjective
  1. keen; piercinga cutting wind
  2. tending to hurt the feelingsa cutting remark
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Derived Formscuttingly, adverb

cut

verb cuts, cutting or cut
  1. to open up or incise (a person or thing) with a sharp edge or instrument; gash
  2. (of a sharp instrument) to penetrate or incise (a person or thing)
  3. to divide or be divided with or as if with a sharp instrumentcut a slice of bread
  4. (intr) to use a sharp-edged instrument or an instrument that cuts
  5. (tr) to trim or prune by or as if by clippingto cut hair
  6. (tr) to reap or mow (a crop, grass, etc)
  7. (tr) to geld or castrate
  8. (tr sometimes foll by out) to make, form, or shape by cuttingto cut a suit
  9. (tr) to hollow or dig out; excavateto cut a tunnel through the mountain
  10. to strike (an object) sharply
  11. (tr) sport to hit (a ball) with a downward slicing stroke so as to impart spin or cause it to fall short
  12. cricket to hit (the ball) to the off side, usually between cover and third man, with a roughly horizontal bat
  13. to hurt or wound the feelings of (a person), esp by malicious speech or action
  14. (tr) informal to refuse to recognize; snub
  15. (tr) informal to absent oneself from (an activity, location, etc), esp without permission or in hasteto cut class
  16. (tr) to abridge, shorten, or edit by excising a part or parts
  17. (tr often foll by down) to lower, reduce, or curtailto cut losses
  18. (tr) to dilute or weakenheroin that was cut with nontoxic elements
  19. (tr) to dissolve or break upto cut fat
  20. (when intr, foll by across or through) to cross or traversethe footpath cuts through the field
  21. (intr) to make a sharp or sudden change in direction; veer
  22. to grow (teeth) through the gums or (of teeth) to appear through the gums
  23. (intr) films
    1. to call a halt to a shooting sequence
    2. (foll by to)to move quickly to another scene
  24. films to edit (film)
  25. (tr) to switch off (a light, car engine, etc)
  26. (tr) (of a performer, recording company, etc) to make (a record or tape of a song, concert, performance, etc)
  27. cards
    1. to divide (the pack) at random into two parts after shuffling
    2. (intr)to pick cards from a spread pack to decide dealer, partners, etc
  28. (tr) to remove (material) from an object by means of a chisel, lathe, etc
  29. (tr) (of a tool) to bite into (an object)
  30. (intr) (of a horse) to injure the leg just above the hoof by a blow from the opposite foot
  31. cut a caper or cut capers
    1. to skip or jump playfully
    2. to act or behave playfully; frolic
  32. cut both ways
    1. to have both good and bad effects
    2. to affect both sides of something, as two parties in an argument, etc
  33. cut a dash to behave or dress showily or strikingly; make a stylish impression
  34. cut a person dead informal to ignore a person completely
  35. cut a good figure to appear or behave well
  36. cut a poor figure to appear or behave badly
  37. cut and run informal to make a rapid escape
  38. cut it slang be successful in doing something
  39. cut it fine informal to allow little margin of time, space, etc
  40. cut corners to do something in the easiest or shortest way, esp at the expense of high standardswe could finish this project early only if we cut corners
  41. cut loose to free or become freed from restraint, custody, anchorage, etc
  42. cut no ice informal to fail to make an impression
  43. cut one's losses to give up spending time, money, or energy on an unprofitable or unsuccessful activity
  44. cut one's teeth on informal
    1. to use at an early age or stage
    2. to practise on
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adjective
  1. detached, divided, or separated by cutting
  2. botany incised or dividedcut leaves
  3. made, shaped, or fashioned by cutting
  4. reduced or diminished by or as if by cuttingcut prices
  5. gelded or castrated
  6. weakened or diluted
  7. British a slang word for drunk
  8. hurt; resentful
  9. cut and dried informal settled or arranged in advance
  10. cut lunch Australian and NZ a sandwich lunch carried from home to work, school, etc
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noun
  1. the act of cutting
  2. a stroke or incision made by cutting; gash
  3. a piece or part cut off, esp a section of food cut from the wholea cut of meat
  4. the edge of anything cut or sliced
  5. a passage, channel, path, etc, cut or hollowed out
  6. an omission or deletion, esp in a text, film, or play
  7. a reduction in price, salary, etc
  8. a decrease in government finance in a particular department or area, usually leading to a reduction of services, staff numbers, etc
  9. short for power cut
  10. mainly US and Canadian a quantity of timber cut during a specific time or operation
  11. informal a portion or share
  12. informal a straw, slip of paper, etc, used in drawing lots
  13. the manner or style in which a thing, esp a garment, is cut; fashion
    1. Irish informala person's general appearanceI didn't like the cut of him
    2. Irish derogatorya dirty or untidy conditionlook at the cut of your shoes
  15. a direct route; short cut
  16. the US name for block (def. 15)
  17. sport the spin of a cut ball
  18. cricket a stroke made with the bat in a roughly horizontal position
  19. films an immediate transition from one shot to the next, brought about by splicing the two shots together
  20. informal an individual piece of music on a record; track
  21. words or an action that hurt another person's feelings
  22. a refusal to recognize an acquaintance; snub
  23. informal, mainly US an unauthorized absence, esp from a school class
  24. chem a fraction obtained in distillation, as in oil refining
  25. the metal removed in a single pass of a machine tool
    1. the shape of the teeth of a file
    2. their coarseness or fineness
  27. British a stretch of water, esp a canal
  28. a cut above informal superior (to); better (than)
  29. make the cut golf to better or equal the required score after two rounds in a strokeplay tournament, thus avoiding elimination from the final two rounds
  30. miss the cut golf to achieve a greater score after the first two rounds of a strokeplay tournament than that required to play in the remaining two rounds
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See also cut across, cut along, cutback, cut down, cut in, cut off, cut out, cut up

Word Origin

C13: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Norwegian kutte to cut, Icelandic kuti small knife
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cutting

cut

n.

1520s, "gash, incision," from cut (v.); meaning "piece cut off" is from 1590s; sense of "a wounding sarcasm" is from 1560s.

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cut

v.

late 13c., possibly Scandinavian, from North Germanic *kut- (cf. Swedish dialectal kuta "to cut," kuta "knife," Old Norse kuti "knife"), or from Old French couteau "knife." Replaced Old English ceorfan (see carve (v.)), sniþan, and scieran (see shear). Meaning "to be absent without excuse" is British university slang from 1794. To cut a pack of cards is from 1590s. Related: Cutting.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
cutting in Medicine

cut

(kŭt)
v.
  1. To penetrate with a sharp edge; strike a narrow opening in.
  2. To separate into parts with or as if with a sharp-edged instrument; sever.
  3. To make an incision or a separation.
  4. To have a new tooth grow through the gums.
  5. To form or shape by severing or incising.
  6. To separate from a body; detach.
  7. To lessen the strength of; dilute.
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n.
  1. The act of cutting.
  2. The result of cutting, especially an opening or wound made by a sharp edge.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Idioms and Phrases with cutting

cut

In addition to the idioms beginning with cut

  • cut above
  • cut across
  • cut a deal
  • cut adrift
  • cut a long story short
  • cut and dried
  • cut and paste
  • cut and run
  • cut a wide swath
  • cut back
  • cut both ways
  • cut capers
  • cut class
  • cut corners
  • cut dead
  • cut down
  • cute as a button
  • cut ice
  • cut in
  • cut into
  • cut it
  • cut it fine
  • cut it out
  • cut loose
  • cut no ice
  • cut off
  • cut off one's nose to spite one's face
  • cut off with a shilling
  • cut of one's jib
  • cut one's losses
  • cut one's teeth on
  • cut out
  • cut out of whole cloth
  • cut short
  • cut someone dead
  • cut someone's throat
  • cut teeth
  • cut the comedy
  • cut the ground from under
  • cut the mustard
  • cut to the bone
  • cut to the chase
  • cut to the quick
  • cut up

also see:

  • (cut) down to size
  • fish or cut bait
  • have one's work cut out
  • like a chicken with its head cut off
  • make (cut) a long story short
  • unkindest cut
  • you could cut it with a knife
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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.