1
as in biting
causing intense discomfort to one's skin
a frigid day with a cutting wind that made it seem even colder
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2
as in sharpened
having an edge thin enough to cut or pierce something
the cutting side of the sword blade
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3
as in satiric
marked by the use of wit that is intended to cause hurt feelings
her cutting comments serve only one purpose: to make someone cry
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1
as in slicing
to penetrate with a sharp edge (as a knife)
I cut my hand on a piece of broken glass
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2
as in skipping
to fail to attend
a warning that she had been cutting too many classes without valid excuses
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3
as in isolating
to deliberately ignore or treat rudely
the snobbish lady cut anyone who didn't meet her standards of wealth and social standing
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4
as in shaving
to make (something) shorter or smaller with the use of a cutting instrument
when you cut the pad, make it a little smaller than the carpet
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5
6
as in diluting
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
the fruit juice was so cut with water that it was barely a fruit-flavored drink
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7
as in veering
to depart abruptly from a straight line or course
cut towards the goal, eluding a defender
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8
as in intersecting
to divide by passing through or across
a long mountain range virtually cuts that country in half
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9
as in analyzing
to identify and examine the basic elements or parts of (something) especially for discovering interrelationships
whichever way you cut it, we won't be seeing any profits from the business for at least three years
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Cite this Entry
“Cutting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cutting. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.
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