slash-and-burn

[slash-uhn-burn]

adjective

1. of a method of agriculture used in the tropics, in which forest vegetation is felled and burned, the land is cropped for a few years, then the forest is allowed to reinvade.

slash-and-burn

adjective

1. denoting a short-term method of cultivation in which land is cleared by destroying and burning trees and other vegetation for temporary agricultural use

Word History and Origins

Origin of slash-and-burn¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

His slash-and-burn conservatism has found little purchase even on this conservative Supreme Court; by now, his opinions might as well come with red flags marking them as top candidates for reversal.

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Gen. Rob Bonta’s office have been working at a blistering pace to draft and file complex legal arguments opposing Trump’s policies on immigration, the economy, tariffs, LGBTQ+ rights, federal employee layoffs, government oversight, the allocation of federal funding to states and localities, the limits of the president’s executive authority and the slash-and-burn budgetary tactics of his billionaire advisor Elon Musk.

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Musk promised his investors that he'll focus less of his time on his slash-and-burn government agency in the coming months.

Read more on Salon

The Trump administration’s slash-and-burn approach to federal programs has delivered a considerable hit to the nation’s environment, but experts say its plans to repeal hard-won protections for clean air and water will also directly jeopardize Americans’ health — and their wallets.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“People all across the country are feeling the pain. The chaos and cruelty has no bounds — from slash-and-burn cuts to critical programs for veterans and farmers, to voting to strip millions of health care, to their continued assault on our fundamental rights and freedoms,” said EMILYs List President Jessica Mackler.

Read more on Los Angeles Times