clear-cut

1 of 3

adjective

1
: sharply outlined : distinct
2
: free from ambiguity or uncertainty : unambiguous
a clear-cut decision

clear-cut

2 of 3

noun

: an area of forest in which all the trees have been cut down
But the logging has been concentrated in the high-volume old-growth forest, and clear-cuts are spread over almost every one of the region's watersheds.Catherine Caufield
also : clear-cutting

clear-cut

3 of 3

verb

clear-cut; clear-cutting

transitive verb

: to cut down all the trees in (an area of forest)
He says there has been a massive deforestation as the Chinese have clear-cut millions of acres of Tibetan Forests to sell lumber on the export market …Daniel Goleman
… native rain forest experts who harvest plants for traditional healers, make from two to 10 times per hectare the income of a farmer who clear-cuts the forest for planting crops.Cathy Sears and Robert Neuwirth

Examples of clear-cut in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
But the ultimate assessment by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office and Ammann’s defense attorney — as well as Judge David Cena — did not treat the case as so clear-cut. Robert Salonga, The Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2024 Jessica Levinson, an election law professor at Loyola Law School and former president of the Los Angeles Ethics Commission, sees the situation as less clear-cut than Common Cause’s McMorris does. Julia Wick, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024 By this standard, the case for cooperation with an India or a Poland is clear-cut. Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2024 But like the subject of Over Vitebsk, which not everyone agrees on, the case isn’t so clear-cut. Tori Latham, Robb Report, 12 Feb. 2024 The city’s independent budget analyst said the legal risks aren’t clear-cut, noting that the deals between the companies and the state don’t anticipate the question facing San Diego. David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 Jan. 2024 Although Latham and Locke’s principles seem pretty clear-cut, some are trickier than others. Gina Jiménez, Scientific American, 22 Jan. 2024 Legal protections are not clear-cut and are uncertain until tested by litigation and/or legislation. Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 16 Jan. 2024 But other times, one goaltender’s performance would surpass the other and call for a clear-cut starter. Jenna Ortiz, The Arizona Republic, 13 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clear-cut.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1849, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

circa 1958, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1914, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of clear-cut was in 1849

Dictionary Entries Near clear-cut

Cite this Entry

“Clear-cut.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clear-cut. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

clear-cut

adjective
ˈkli(ə)r-ˈkət
: free from doubt or uncertainty : definite
a clear-cut victory
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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