Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

cut down to size

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.84 in modern English

Syllables: cut -down -to -size
IPA

28

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

4

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To humble or humiliate, especially someone or something that is perceived as overly domineering or too proud.

Informal

verb

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see cut, down, size.

Example Sentences

"The war was seen by the Foreign Office as a golden opportunity to undo the UN Partition Resolution and cut Israel down to size'."
"The system cut everybody down to size. I felt small and vulnerable."
"If Arthur Oliphant's aim had been to cut them down to size, it worked: photographs taken at Somerville College in 1888 show Bamba and her sister looking diffident."
"There is, however, another general approach to cutting the potential client population down to size: establish criteria, grounded in the Bank's basic strategy, that restrict the range of enterprises that the Bank tries to reach."
"As the plastic moves between the stationary and rotating blades it is cut down to size."

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

cuts down to size (present, singular) cutting down to size (participle, present)

Phrases

bring low

Frequently Paired Words

bring low

Synonyms

bring down to size knock down to size trim down to size whittle down to size

Questions

What does cut down to size mean?: To humble or humiliate, especially someone or something that is perceived as overly domineering or too proud.

How to pronounce cut down to size

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