cut

cut / kət/ • v. (cut·ting ; past and past part. cut ) [tr.] 1. make an opening, incision, or wound in (something) with a sharp-edged tool or object: he cut his big toe on a sharp stone [intr.] fig. his scorn cut deeper than knives. 2. remove (something) from something larger by using a sharp implement: I cut his photograph out of the paper. ∎ inf. castrate (an animal, esp. a horse). ∎  (cut something out) make something by cutting: I cut out some squares of paper. ∎  (cut something out) remove, exclude, or stop eating or doing something undesirable: start today by cutting out fatty foods. ∎  (cut something out) separate an animal from the main herd. 3. divide into pieces with a knife or other sharp implement: cut the beef into thin slices. ∎  make divisions in (something): land that has been cut up by streams into forested areas. ∎  separate (something) into two; sever. ∎  (cut something down) make something, esp. a tree, fall by cutting it through at the base. ∎  (cut someone down) (of a weapon, bullet, or disease) kill or injure someone. 4. make or form (something) by using a sharp tool to remove material: workmen cut a hole in the pipe. ∎  make or design (a garment) in a particular way: [as adj.] (cut) an impeccably cut suit. ∎  make (a path, tunnel, or other route) by excavation, digging, or chopping: cut a road through a rain forest | [intr.] investigators called for a machete to cut through the bush. 5. trim or reduce the length of (something, esp. grass or a person's hair or fingernails) by using a sharp implement. 6. reduce the amount or quantity of: buyers will bargain hard to cut the cost of the house they want [intr.] the paper glut cuts into profits. ∎  abridge (a text, movie, or performance) by removing material. ∎  Comput. delete (part of a text or other display) completely or so as to insert a copy of it elsewhere. See also cut and paste. ∎  (in sports) remove (a player) from a team’s roster. ∎  end or interrupt the provision of (something, esp. power or food supplies): we resolved to cut oil supplies to territories controlled by the rebels. ∎  (cut something off) block the usual means of access to a place: the caves were cut off from the outside world. ∎  absent oneself deliberately from (something one should normally attend, esp. school): Robert was cutting class. ∎  switch off (an engine or a light). 7. (of a line) cross or intersect (another line). ∎  [intr.] (cut across) pass or traverse, esp. so as to shorten one's route: the following aircraft cut across to join him. ∎  [intr.] (cut across) have an effect regardless of (divisions or boundaries between groups): subcultures that cut across national and political boundaries. ∎  [intr.] (cut along) inf., dated leave or move hurriedly. 8. dated ignore or refuse to recognize (someone). 9. [intr. , often in imper.] stop filming or recording. ∎  move to another shot in a movie: cut to a dentist's surgery. ∎  [tr.] make (a movie) into a coherent whole by removing parts or placing them in a different order. 10. make (a sound recording). 11. divide (a pack of playing cards) by lifting a portion from the top, either to reveal or draw a card at random or to place the top portion under the bottom portion. 12. Golf slice (the ball). 13. adulterate (a drug) or dilute (alcohol) by mixing it with another substance. 14. (cut it) inf. come up to expectations; meet requirements. • n. 1. an act of cutting, in particular: ∎  [in sing.] a haircut. ∎  a stroke or blow given by a sharp-edged implement or by a whip or cane: he could skin an animal with a single cut of the knife. ∎ fig. a wounding remark or act. ∎  a reduction in amount or size: she took a 20% pay cut. ∎  (in sports) a removal of a player from a team’s roster. ∎  an act of removing part of a play, movie, or book, esp. to shorten the work or to delete offensive material: the author was willing to make cuts. ∎  an immediate transition from one scene to another in a movie. ∎ Golf the halfway point of a golf tournament where half of the players are eliminated. ∎  Tennis a stroke made with a sharp horizontal or downward action of the racket, imparting spin. 2. a result of cutting something, in particular: ∎  a long narrow incision in the skin made by something sharp. ∎  a long narrow opening or incision made in a surface or piece of material. ∎  a piece of meat cut from a carcass. ∎  [in sing.] inf. a share of the profits from something: the directors are demanding their cut. ∎  a recording of a piece of music: a cut from his album. ∎  a version of a movie after editing: the director's cut. ∎  a passage cut or dug out, as a railroad cutting or a new channel made for a river or other waterway. ∎  a woodcut. 3. [in sing.] the way or style in which something, esp. a garment or someone's hair, is cut: the elegant cut of his dinner jacket. PHRASES: be cut out for (or to be) inf. have exactly the right qualities for a particular role, task, or job: I'm just not cut out to be a policeman. a cut above inf. noticeably superior to. cut and dried (of a situation) completely settled or decided. cut and thrust Fencing the use of both the edge and the point of one’s sword while fighting. ∎  a spirited and rapid interchange of views: the cut and thrust of political debate. ∎  a situation or sphere of activity regarded as carried out under adversarial conditions. cut corners undertake something in what appears to be the easiest, quickest, or cheapest way, esp. by omitting to do something important or ignoring rules. cut a deal inf. come to an arrangement, esp. in business; make a deal. cut someone down to size inf. deflate someone's exaggerated sense of self-worth. cut something down to size reduce the size or power of something, for example an organization, that is regarded as having become too large. cut a —— figure present oneself or appear in a particular way: David has cut a dashing figure on the international social scene. cut from the same cloth of the same nature; similar. cut in line push into a line of people in order to be served or dealt with before one's turn. cut it finesee fine¹ . cut it out [usu. in imper.] inf. used to ask someone to stop doing or saying something that is annoying or offensive: I'm sick of that joke; cut it out, can't you? cut loose act without restraint. cut one's losses abandon an enterprise or course of action that is clearly going to be unprofitable or unsuccessful before one suffers too much loss or harm. cut the mustard inf. come up to expectations; reach the required standard. cut someone/something short interrupt someone or something; bring an abrupt or premature end to something said or done. cut a (or the) rug inf. dance, typically in an energetic or accomplished way. cut one's teeth acquire initial practice or experience of a particular sphere of activity or with a particular organization. cut a tooth (usu.of a baby or child) have a tooth appear through the gum. cut to the chase inf. come to the point. have one's work cut outsee work. make the cut Golf avoid elimination from the last two rounds of a four-round tournament.PHRASAL VERBS: cut in 1. interrupt someone while they are speaking: “It's urgent,” Raoul cut in. ∎ dated interrupt a dancing couple to take over from one partner. 2. pull in too closely in front of another vehicle after having overtaken it. 3. (of a motor or other mechanical device) begin operating, esp. when triggered automatically by an electrical signal. 4. cut someone in inf. include someone in a deal and give them a share of the profits. cut into interrupt the course of: Victoria's words cut into her thoughts. cut someone off interrupt someone while they are speaking. ∎  interrupt someone during a telephone call by breaking the connection. ∎  prevent someone from receiving or being provided with something, esp. power or water: consumers cut off for nonpayment. ∎  reject someone as one's heir; disinherit someone. ∎  prevent someone from having access to somewhere or someone; isolate someone from something they previously had connections with: we were cut off from reality. ∎ inf. (of a driver) overtake someone and pull in too closely in front of them. cut out 1. (of a motor or engine) suddenly stop operating. 2. inf. (of a person) leave quickly, esp. so as to avoid a boring or awkward situation. cut someone out exclude someone: his mother cut him out of her will. cut up inf. behave in a mischievous or unruly manner. ORIGIN: Middle English (probably existing, although not recorded, in Old English); probably of Germanic origin and related to Norwegian kutte and Icelandic kuta ‘cut with a small knife,’ kuti ‘small blunt knife.’