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Glite Dictionary
cost cutting

cost cutting

14 3.0
Steps a company takes to spend less money
  • noun
  • /kɔst ˈkʌtɪŋ/
translation icon : reducción de costos
  • After reviewing the budget, the manager implemented several cost cutting strategies to reduce unnecessary expenses.
  • cost cutting measures
  • cost cutting strategy
  • cost cutting approach

This is another example of the cost cutting going on at NBC.

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Examples

  • Increasing class size is often seen as a quick and convenient cost-cutting strategy.

    Academic text (2016)

  • All participants in the system would benefit from identifying cost-cutting measures.

    Academic text (2016)

  • This is another example of the cost cutting going on at NBC.

    Late Night with Seth Meyers

  • This is a piece of cost cutting that Volkswagen has been doing for years.

  • Under conditions of declining budgets, spending less on resources such as equipment and supplies is a common cost-cutting strategy.

    Academic text (2010)

  • A true economic partnership should provide the hospital and physicians with equal rewards for their cost-cutting efforts.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Competition within the aquaculture industry is intense, and with depressed prices, corporate attention has turned toward cost-cutting measures.

    Academic text (2003)

  • BP Amoco said its profits more than doubled because of rising oil prices and cost-cutting measures.

    Academic text (2000)

  • Even community colleges are limiting student enrollments and reducing course sections as cost-cutting measures (Blumenstyk, 1991).

    Academic text (1994)

  • In a new cost-cutting initiative, residents in Ottawa-Carleton are separating their recyclables into two curbside containers.

    Academic text (1999)

Synonyms

spending cut
vscost cutting
79 3.3

A decision by a government or organization to use less money

is the ongoing process of lowering expenses across an organization
budget cut
vscost cutting
57 2.8

Less money given to a department or service in a budget

focuses on general expense reduction rather than only plan allocations
cutback
vscost cutting
52 3.7

A smaller amount of money or resources that an organization uses to lower costs

is specifically about reducing expenses in organizations rather than general shrinkage
retrenchment
vscost cutting
  • Formal
2 8.1

A cut in spending by a business or government to save money

aims broadly at lowering expenses rather than only restoring stability
economization
vscost cutting
  • US
6.3

The act of reducing spending and using resources better to save money

focuses on reducing expenses rather than primarily improving efficiency

Antonyms

cost increase
4 2.4

A rise in how much you must pay to buy or make something

How Extensive

austerity
  • Literature
97 7.4
downsizing
  • Jargon
23 4.5
cost cutting
14 3.0
budget cut
57 2.8

Surface Forms

cost cutting singular
cost cuttings plural

Morphology

cost + cut

The meaning 'the process of reducing expenses' is directly and compositionally derived from combining 'cost' (expenses) with 'cutting' (reducing or removing), so a learner who knows both words can infer the phrase. This noun phrase formation and the logic of reducing costs is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English compounding patterns, making it immediately comprehensible to B1 learners.

Etymology

Cost cutting comes from a simple image: imagine using a knife or scissors to cut away parts you do not need, where you are cutting away costs. So, it means 'to reduce expenses' for a company or organization.