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

see also:

cut down to size

Examples of cut down in a Sentence

we need to cut down that dying tree

Recent Examples on the Web

Francisco Lindor tried to score the tying run from first base but was cut down on a relay from center fielder Oneil Cruz to shortstop Jared Triolo to Davis at the plate for the first out of the inning. —CBS News, 29 Mar. 2026

Before Illinois could cut down the nets at Houston’s Toyota Center, a buzzer malfunction caused a loud, roughly 10-minute delay. —Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2026

The only trick now is for the league to get a team to the final Monday night of the season and actually cut down the nets. —ABC News, 28 Mar. 2026

The only existing version of the 1942 Orson Welles family drama was famously cut down and reshot by RKO against the director’s wishes, with more than an hour of unseen footage eventually destroyed. —David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 27 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, 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)