to abridge or shorten; edit by omitting a part or parts: to cut a speech.
8.
to lower, reduce, diminish, or curtail (sometimes followed by down): to cut prices.
9.
to dilute; make less thick: to cut wine.
10.
to dissolve: That detergent cuts grease effectively.
11.
to intersect; cross: One line cuts another at right angles.
12.
Informal. to cease; discontinue (often followed by out): Cut the kidding. Let's cut out the pretense.
13.
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.
14.
to dilute or adulterate (a drug) by mixing it with other substances.
15.
to grow (a tooth or teeth) through the gum: The baby is cutting his teeth.
16.
to type, write, or draw on (a stencil) for mimeographing.
17.
to make or fashion by cutting, as a statue, jewel, or garment.
18.
Glassmaking. to produce a pattern (in glass) by grinding and polishing.
19.
to refuse to recognize socially; shun ostentatiously: Her friends began to cut her as the season progressed.
20.
to strike sharply, as with a whip.
21.
to absent oneself from: allowed to cut three classes per semester.
22.
Movies,Television.
a.
to stop (a scene or shot being filmed).
b.
to edit (a film).
23.
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).
24.
to wound the feelings of severely.
25.
Cards.
a.
to divide (a pack of cards) at random into two or more parts, by removing cards from the top.
b.
to take (a card) from a deck.
26.
to record a selection on (a phonograph record or tape); make a recording of.
27.
to castrate or geld.
28.
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.
29.
to hollow out; excavate; dig: to cut a trench.
30.
Cricket. to strike and send off (a ball) in front of the batsman, and parallel to the wicket.
31.
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.
to strike a person, animal, etc., sharply, as with a whip.
38.
to wound the feelings severely: His criticism cut deep.
39.
(of the teeth) to grow through the gums.
40.
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).
Origin: 1175–1225; Middle English cutten, kytten, kitten,Old English *cyttan; akin to Old Swedish kotta to cut, Old Norse kuti little knife
Related forms
half-cut, adjective
mis·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 1. gash, slash, slit, lance. 2. cleave, sunder, bisect. 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. 7. abbreviate, curtail.
late 13c., possibly Scandinavian, from N.Gmc. *kut-, or from O.Fr. couteau "knife." Replaced O.E. ceorfan "carve," sniþan, and scieran "shear." Meaning "to be absent without excuse" is British university slang from 1794. The noun meaning "gash, incision" is attested from 1520s; meaning "piece cut
mod. having well-defined abdominal muscles. : Andy works hard to try to get a gut that's cut.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
cut both ways
Have a mixed effect, have advantages and disadvantages. For example, Their solution will cut both ways; it'll take longer but is permanent. This metaphoric expression alludes to a double-edged sword. [c. 1600]