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Glite Dictionary
to cut out the middleman

to cut out the middleman

4 3.7
Buy or sell directly from the maker without using other sellers
  • idiom
translation icon : eliminar al intermediario
  • This legislation cut out the middleman, and by doing so, freed up $68 billion.
  • just cut out the middleman
  • need to cut out the middleman

Examples

  • So that means that Quints can cut out the cost of the middleman and pass the savings right on to you.

  • BOTTOM LINE: Social media cuts out the middleman between brands and their audience.

    Blog text (12)

  • Not only that, but you can get it at a very good price—they cut out the middleman and sell directly to good people like you.

    Blog text (7)

  • The debate, especially yesterday's format, gave the voters the opportunity to cut out the middleman and see for themselves who they like, who they believe, and who they believe is capable of handling the challenges of American governance for the next four years.

    Blog text (13)

  • Sometimes Congress is even more forthright in its buck-passing, and it cuts out the bureaucratic middleman altogether.

    Academic text (1990)

  • By using online platforms, many businesses can cut out the middleman and sell directly to consumers.

  • She decided to cut out the middleman by purchasing handmade crafts directly from local artisans.

  • To save money, they chose to cut out the middleman and buy their supplies straight from the manufacturer.

Antonyms

to broker
79 4.4

To arrange a deal between people or groups by talking and agreeing

Surface Forms

cut out the middleman infinitive
cut out the middleman past
cut out the middleman past participle
cutting out the middleman present participle
cuts out the middleman third person singular

Morphology

cut + out + the + middleman

The phrase is a straightforward composition: 'cut out' conveys removing or eliminating and 'middleman' denotes an intermediary, so the combined meaning 'remove the intermediary / deal directly with the producer' is directly derivable from the parts. This verb + object composition is common cross-linguistically and follows standard English usage, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will generally understand it.

Etymology

Cut out the middleman comes from a simple market picture: a maker, a buyer, and a person in the middle who takes a fee. To cut out that middleman is to remove them so the buyer deals with the maker directly, which is why the phrase means 'to deal directly with the producer or supplier and often save money'.