cut; cutting
1
a
: to penetrate with or as if with an edged instrument
cut one's hand with a knife
b
: to hurt the feelings of
Her sarcasm cut him to the quick.
c
: to strike sharply with a cutting effect
cut him across the legs with a whip
d
: to strike (a ball) with a glancing blow that imparts a reverse spin
cut a tennis ball with an inclined racket
e
: to experience the growth of (a tooth) through the gum
The toddler is cutting a tooth.
f
: to harm (oneself) by making cuts or scratches on one's body
The reasons given for self-inflicted violence indicate that it is a way of relieving intolerable feelings. When cutting themselves, women (and sometimes men) report that they do not feel any pain.—Deborah Feller
2
b
: to shorten by omissions
cut the manuscript
c
: dilute, adulterate
cut the whiskey with water
d
: to reduce in amount
cut costs
e
: to remove (something, such as text or a picture) from a computer document and place it on the clipboard so that it can be pasted into another position, document, or program
3
c(1)
: to separate or discharge from an organization
cut them from the team
(2)
: to single out and isolate
cut a calf out from the herd
d
: to turn sharply
The driver cut the steering wheel hard.
e
: to go or pass around or about : bypass
cut the checkout line
4
a
: to divide into segments
cut the cake
d(1)
: to divide (a deck of cards) into two portions
(2)
: to draw (a card) from the deck
e
: to divide into shares : split
f
: analyze, break down
Any way you cut it, we won.
5
b(1)
: to sing, play, or act for the recording of
cut an album
cut a commercial
(2)
: to sing or play (a song, a track, etc.) for a studio recording
c
: to type on a stencil
d
: edit sense 1b
cut a motion picture
6
7
a
: to engage in (a frolicsome or mischievous action)
… on summer nights strange capers are cut under the thin guise of a Christian festival.—Donald Culross Peattie
b
: to give the appearance or impression of
cut a fine figure
8
: to be able to manage or handle
—usually used in negative constructions
can't cut that kind of work anymore
9
a
: to yield or accord to another : give
cut me some slack
b
: to fill out and sign (a check)
1
a
: to function as or as if as an edged tool
This knife cuts well.
b
: to undergo incision or severance
The cheese cuts easily.
c
: to perform the operation of dividing, severing, incising, or intersecting
The tailor is busy cutting.
d
: to make a stroke with a whip, sword, or other weapon
e
: to wound feelings or sensibilities
remarks that cut
f
: to cause constriction or chafing
a coat that cuts at the armpits
g
: to be of effect, influence, or significance
an analysis that cuts deep
2
a(1)
: to divide a pack of cards especially in order to decide the deal or settle a bet
(2)
: to draw a card from the pack
b
: to divide spoils : split
3
a
: to proceed obliquely (see oblique entry 1 sense 1) from a straight course
cut across the yard
b
: to move swiftly
a yacht cutting through the water
c
: to describe an oblique or diagonal line
d
: to change sharply in direction : swerve
The driver cut across three lanes of traffic.
e
: to make an abrupt transition from one sound or image to another in motion pictures, radio, or television
The film cuts from the ballroom to the garden.
f
: to make a sudden transition or imaginative leap
The story cuts to 1917.
4
: to stop photographing motion pictures
The director yelled "Cut!"
5
: to advance by skipping or bypassing another
cut to the front of the line
6
: to engage in self-harm by making cuts or scratches on one's body
middle school students reporting they knew of several classmates who cut
1
: a product of cutting: such as
a(1)
: an opening made with an edged instrument
(2)
: a wound made by something sharp : gash
b
: a creek, channel, or inlet made by excavation or worn by natural action
c
: a surface or outline left by cutting
d
: a passage cut as a roadway
e
: a grade or step especially in a social scale
a cut above the ordinary
f
: a subset of a set such that when it is subtracted from the set the remainder is not connected
g
: a pictorial illustration
2
: the act or an instance of cutting: such as
a
: a gesture or expression that hurts the feelings
made an unkind cut
b
: a straight passage or course
c
: a stroke or blow with the edge of a knife or other edged tool
d
: a lash with or as if with a whip
e
: the act of reducing or removing a part
a cut in pay
f
: an act or turn of cutting cards
also
: the result of cutting
g
: the elimination of part of a large field from further participation, consideration, or competition (as in a golf tournament)
—often used with miss or make to denote respectively being or not being among those eliminated
played well and made the cut
3
: something that is cut or cut off: such as
a
: a length of cloth varying from 40 to 100 yards (36.6 to 91.4 meters)
b
: the yield of products cut especially during one harvest
c
: a segment or section of a meat carcass or a part of one
d
: a group of animals selected from a herd
e
: share
took his cut of the profits
4
: a voluntary absence from a class
5
a
: a stroke that cuts a ball
also
: the spin imparted by such a stroke
b
: a swing by a batter at a pitched baseball
c
: an exchange of captures in checkers
6
: a result of editing: such as
a
: an abrupt transition from one sound or image to another in movies, radio, or television
b
: an edited version of a film
: marked by a well-developed and highly defined musculature
cut abs
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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