cookie-cutter

1 of 2

adjective

cook·​ie-cut·​ter ˈku̇-kē-ˌkə-tər How to pronounce cookie-cutter (audio)
: marked by lack of originality or distinction
cookie-cutter shopping malls

cookie cutter

2 of 2

noun

: a device used to cut rolled cookie dough into shapes before baking

Examples of cookie-cutter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Musk has already tried to course correct after realizing that—unlike the over 1 million virtually identical Model Y cars stamped out in cookie-cutter fashion this year—installing solar PVs to fit each and every need required reinventing the wheel each time. Bychristiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 20 Nov. 2023 Williams Sonoma’s collaboration with Harry Potter brings fun and magic into the kitchen with this adorable cookie-cutter set. Nikita Charuza, Peoplemag, 17 Nov. 2023 Compared with Very’s and Eliade’s, the Christianity humming beneath Andrew S. Jacobs’s Gospel Thrillers: Conspiracy, Fiction, and the Vulnerable Bible (Cambridge University Press, $39.99) is positively cookie-cutter. Dan Piepenbring, Harper's Magazine, 15 Nov. 2023 Today, the neighborhood is mostly a mix of office towers that jut up from a sea of cookie-cutter, low-slung office buildings served by acres of surface parking lots. Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 15 Nov. 2023 Together, the ample snow and glades make for an experience that feels more like a day spent off-piste than one spent at a cookie-cutter resort. Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 15 Nov. 2023 Excursions aren’t included, and were the weak spot on this sailing—perhaps because the ship wasn’t full, there were only a limited number of options to consider, and the choices tended to be a bit cookie-cutter. Sarah Khan, Robb Report, 23 Oct. 2023 Despite the scale, there’s an amazing lack of cookie-cutter repetition or of areas that feel generic or padded out. Kyle Orland, Ars Technica, 17 Oct. 2023 Like the numerous cookie-cutter climate lawsuits filed by other states and municipalities against these same oil companies, the California lawsuit blames them for causing climate change and all manner of damages — drought, storms, heat, cold, wildfires, rising seas, and so on. Jonathan Lesser, National Review, 13 Oct. 2023
Noun
The cookie cutters are designed to look like iconic visuals from the books and movies, like the quidditch snitch, Hedwig the Owl, and the Hogwarts Express. Nikita Charuza, Peoplemag, 17 Nov. 2023 Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and poke a hole in the top with a straw. Emily Vanschmus, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Nov. 2023 Cut middle out of each dough circle using a 1-inch round cookie cutter. Joy Howard, Southern Living, 24 Oct. 2023 After making your favorite sangria recipe, add a spooky twist to this classic by filling your punch bowl with fruit like honeydew melon and apples sliced into fun Halloween shapes using cookie cutters. Christina Manian, Rdn, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Oct. 2023 Use your favorite seasonal cookie cutters, like pumpkins or turkeys! Christopher Michel, Country Living, 5 Sep. 2023 Cut dough into circles using a 2 1/2- to 3-inch round cookie cutter. Joy Howard, Southern Living, 24 Oct. 2023 Like other sharks, cookie cutters lose and replace their teeth regularly. Steven Hill, Field & Stream, 26 July 2023 Shackleton Crater pops from the moon’s South Pole, as if a round cookie cutter were just punched into the rocks, in a gorgeous new image that shows portions of the lunar surface that are permanently shrouded by shadow. Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cookie-cutter.' 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

1922, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1864, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cookie-cutter was in 1864

Dictionary Entries Near cookie-cutter

cookie

cookie-cutter

cookie cutter

Cite this Entry

“Cookie-cutter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cookie-cutter. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.

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