cutting
Americannoun
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the act of a person or thing that cuts.
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something cut, cut off, or cut out.
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Horticulture. a piece, as a root, stem, or leaf, cut from a plant and used for propagation.
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something made by cutting, as a recording.
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a form of repetitive self-injury in which a person deliberately cuts the skin, as to cope with stress or negative emotions.
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Manège.
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the removal of a specific animal from a herd of cattle, as performed by a ranch horse.
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a competitive exhibition in which horses demonstrate this skill.
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Chiefly British. a clipping from a newspaper, magazine, etc.
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British. a trenchlike excavation, especially through a hill, as one made in constructing a highway.
adjective
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able to cut or slice.
a cutting blade.
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piercing, as a wind.
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wounding the feelings severely; sarcastic.
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Manège. relating to or noting a horse bred or trained for the ranching task of separating a specific animal from a herd of cattle, or the competitive exhibition of this skill: The last day of the rodeo was dedicated to the cutting competition and barrel racing finals.
Champion cutting horses are bred for agility.
The last day of the rodeo was dedicated to the cutting competition and barrel racing finals.
noun
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a piece cut off from the main part of something
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horticulture
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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
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a part separated for this purpose
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Also called (esp US and Canadian): clipping. an article, photograph, etc, cut from a newspaper or other publication
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the editing process by which a film is cut and made
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an excavation in a piece of high land for a road, railway, etc, enabling it to remain at approximately the same level
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informal sharp-wittedness
there is no cutting in him
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(modifier) designed for or adapted to cutting; edged; sharp
a cutting tool
adjective
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keen; piercing
a cutting wind
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tending to hurt the feelings
a cutting remark
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of cutting
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; see origin at cut, -ing 1, -ing 2
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.
See Examples For:
China has shown during the war that it can sway global oil markets by cutting its imports.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
It is "a boost for home grown innovation and expertise. And a step towards more people getting access to new medicines and cutting edge treatments that will change lives for the better".
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
“We have robust processes in place for finding big winners and letting them run. We are also good at cutting when we see early signs of fatigue.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
"Internationally, people will look at that and will hardly believe it. You're cutting off the radio astronomy capability in the country," Prof Kramer said.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
“We weren’t supposed to end up in the water, but somebody got a little overexcited when he spotted the Butterfly cutting the line to one of the life rafts.”
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
"A survival strategy starts with finding clean cuttings in the wild before myrtle rust attacks them and propagating them to grow at safe sites," he said.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2026
Traditionally, date palms are also grown from cuttings.
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2025
The county slowed tree cuttings earlier this year amid outcry and concerns that those that had been damaged by the fire but were still alive had been removed prematurely.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2025
The unlikeliest tree cuttings from the world over were carried here, adapted and came to elbow out the locals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2025
She took cuttings from her balsam trees near Jericho to plant back in Egypt.
From "Sterling Biographies®: Cleopatra: Egypt's Last and Greatest Queen" by Susan Blackaby
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.
