cut

Everyday

1. To cut is to divide something or take a piece off with a knife or scissors. tree →
2. To cut is to make something shorter: «cut hair», «cut the grass». tree →
3. To cut down is to make less: «cut down on sugar». tree →
4. A cut is a small wound where the skin is opened. tree →
5. A cut is a piece or a part taken off, or a share of money: «my cut». tree →
6. A cut is a fall in an amount: «a price cut», «cuts to the budget». tree →
7. (casual) «Cut it out!» means stop it; «cut in» means push into a queue or interrupt; «didn't make the cut» means was not chosen. tree →
8. (rude) «Cut the crap» means stop talking nonsense; «cut» or «gutted» (UK) means very upset. tree →
9. (euphemism) «Job cuts» or «staff cuts» mean people lose their jobs. tree →
10. (formal) Exams say «divide into», «sever», «partition», «subdivide», «reduce» and «a reduction of». tree →
11. (informal) To cut someone loose means to set them free by cutting the ropes that tie them. tree →

In the lessons

to take a piece away, or to make equal pieces: «cuts off D» takes D away; «cuts into K equal pieces» divides by K; in crafts we cut paper shapes; phrases: «cut off», «cut out», «cut into», «cut in half», «cut down», «short cut», «price cut»; in casual talk «cut it out», «cut in line», «what's my cut?»; in rough talk «cut the crap, how many did you take?»; in the exam voice «a rope is partitioned into 4 segments of equal length», «a reduction of 20 per cent»

Examples

• Ben cuts off 5 metres. tree →
• Mia cuts a 12-metre rope into 4 equal pieces. tree →
• Anna cut the cake into 8 slices. tree →
• Cut out the star shape carefully. tree →
• I cut my finger on the paper. tree →
• Cut the pizza in half. tree →
• We took a short cut through the field. tree →
• Cut it out, you two, or no TV! tree →
• Cut the crap, how many biscuits did you take? 3? tree →
• The shop cut its prices by 5 dollars. tree →
• A rope of a length of 12 metres is partitioned into 4 segments of equal length. Determine the length of each segment. tree →
• Many workers lost their jobs in the cuts. tree →

Note

Past: cut (the same). «cuts off D» takes D away from the thing cut. «cuts into K equal pieces» divides the length by K. «partitioned into K equal segments» in an exam is the same. Trap: cutting a cake into 8 slices still means one cake. Trap: cutting a rope into K pieces needs K − 1 cuts. «a cut of 5 dollars» lowers the price by 5. Safety: carry scissors with the points down; tell an adult about a deep cut.

In Jewish tradition

Cut includes cutting up an offering, and "cut off" means being removed from the people as a punishment.

Interpretation. "Cut off" (karet) is understood by the rabbis as a serious heavenly punishment. Some explain it as early death or loss of the soul's place in the world to come.

Examples

• And he shall flay the burnt-offering, and cut it into its pieces. (Torah LEV.1.6, JPS 1917) tree →
• then thou shalt cut off her hand, thine eye shall have no pity. (Torah DEU.25.12, JPS 1917) tree →
• Whosoever it be that eateth any blood, that soul shall be cut off from his people. (Torah LEV.7.27, JPS 1917) tree →
• Or where were the upright cut off? (Writings JOB.4.7, JPS 1917) tree →
• And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood. (Prophets 2KI.6.4, JPS 1917) tree →
• Waters flowed over my head; I said: 'I am cut off.' (Writings LAM.3.54, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Past: cut (the same). «cuts off D» takes D away from the thing cut. «cuts into K equal pieces» divides the length by K. «partitioned into K equal segments» in an exam is the same. Trap: cutting a cake into 8 slices still means one cake. Trap: cutting a rope into K pieces needs K − 1 cuts. «a cut of 5 dollars» lowers the price by 5. Safety: carry scissors with the points down; tell an adult about a deep cut.