cut down

verb

cut down; cutting down; cuts down

transitive verb

1

a

: to strike down and kill or incapacitate

b

: knock down

2

a

: to remodel by removing extras or unwanted furnishings and fittings

b

: to remake in a smaller size

intransitive verb

: to reduce or curtail volume or activity

cut down on smoking

Phrases

cut down to size

: to reduce from an inflated or exaggerated importance to true or suitable stature

Examples of cut down in a Sentence

we need to cut down that dying tree

Recent Examples on the Web

With the Trump administration threatening to cut down federal funding for EV rebates through the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, states will have to increasingly rely on themselves to fund these programs. —Rambo Talabong, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2025

Editing, summarizing, translating, turning longer-form assets into social clips and more—AI helps cut down the grunt work so marketers can focus on high-impact deliverables. —Nate Roy, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025

This also cuts down on mining for new raw materials, which helps reduce carbon emissions. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 8 July 2025

Over the past century, people have been cutting down trees to make room for agriculture and development, but cicadas count on those trees for food and mating grounds. —Sarah Henry, The Courier-Journal, 8 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1571, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Rhymes for cut down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown

Kids Definition

cut down

verb

1

: to knock down and kill or wound

2

: to make over in a smaller size

3

: to reduce something in amount

cut down on energy use

Medical Definition

cutdown

noun

cut·​down ˈkət-ˌdau̇n 

: incision of a superficial blood vessel (as a vein) to facilitate insertion of a catheter (as for administration of fluids)