cut English · revision 3592

+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|attested=c. 1275}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /kʌt/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|cutten]] (also [[m|enm|kitten]], [[m|enm|kette]]), of uncertain origin.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) Hoad and the Middle English Dictionary infer from the regional variants an unrecorded Old English [[m|ang|*cyttan]],^(Hoad 1986)^(Etymonline) and the SOED and COED think it probably existed in Old English though it is not recorded.^(SOED 2002)^(COED 2004)^(Cresswell 2021) It is compared with Swedish dialect ''kuta'', “to cut”, Icelandic [[m|is|kuta|t=to cut with a little knife]] and [[m|is|kuti|t=little blunt knife]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Klein 1966)^(Hoad 1986) and Barnhart suggests it may be borrowed from a Scandinavian source;^(Barnhart 1988) Etymonline also mentions a proposed derivation from French [[m|fr|couteau|t=knife]].^(Etymonline) It largely displaced Old English [[m|ang|ceorfan]], the source of [[carve]].^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ To make an incision in with an edged tool: about 1275,^(OED 1989) or probably before 1300, in ''Kyng Alisaunder'' and ''Arthour and Merlin''.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Of an instrument, “to have a cutting edge” is from about 1400, including ''cut both ways''.^(OED 1989) To strike with a whip is from 1607.^(OED 1989) The noun meant “a certain length” in the mid-15th century,^(Etymonline) and a gash or wound from 1530, in Palsgrave.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MW Collegiate) A stroke with a sword or knife is from 1601, in ''Julius Caesar''.^(Barnhart 1988) A piece cut off, especially of meat, is from the 1590s.^(Etymonline) The manner in which a thing is cut is from the 1570s, hence “fashion, style” from the 1580s.^(Etymonline) A wounding remark is from the 1560s,^(Etymonline) an omission from about 1600,^(Etymonline) a channel dug out from 1730,^(Etymonline) and a reduction by 1881.^(Etymonline) The slang sense “a share of profits” is a later one.^(AHD) ''Cut and dried'', “settled, routine”, is from the early 18th century, from the dried herbs sold in shops as opposed to fresh ones.^(Cresswell 2021)^(Etymonline) The adjective ''cut'' meant “drunk” in slang from the late 17th century.^(SOED 2002)^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1275 – to make an incision in.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1400 – of a tool, to cut, and ''cut both ways''.^(OED 1989)

+ * mid-15th century – noun, a length.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1530 – noun, a gash.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1560s – a wounding remark.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1570s – the way a thing is cut.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1590s – a cut of meat.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1601 – a stroke with a blade (''Julius Caesar'').^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * 1730 – a channel or trench.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1881 – a reduction.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To penetrate or wound with a sharp edge.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # To divide or remove with a sharp instrument; to [[sever]].^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # To shorten by trimming; to [[reap]] or [[fell]].^(AHD)

+ # To shape or form by cutting.^(AHD)

+ # To reduce or [[curtail]]: ''cut costs''.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To remove part of a text or film.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # To change direction abruptly; to go directly.^(AHD)^(Wright 1898)

+ # To divide a pack of cards.^(AHD)

+ # To hurt the feelings of.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # To stay away from: ''cut a class''.^(AHD)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # The act of cutting, or the opening or wound it makes.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+ # A piece cut off, especially of [[meat]].^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # A reduction or removal.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # The style in which a garment is cut.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+ # ''(informal)'' A share of [[profit|alt=profits]].^(AHD)

+ # A hurtful remark.^(AHD)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # That has been cut; shaped by cutting.^(AHD)^(SOED 2002)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[cuttable]]

+ * [[crosscut]]

+ * [[cutaway]]

+ * [[cutthroat]]

+ * [[offcut]]

+ * [[outcut]]

+ * [[overcut]]

+ * [[undercut]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[carve]]

+ * [[cutlet]]

+ * [[cutter]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ A separate noun ''cut'', “lot”, in ''draw cuts'', to draw lots with straws of different lengths, is recorded before 1300 and is of unknown origin;^(OED 1989)^(Hoad 1986) the English Dialect Dictionary found it in general dialect use in Scotland, Ireland and England.^(Wright 1898)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}