to cut the umbilical cord
1
6.8
- idiom
- Informal
:
cortar el cordón umbilical
Examples
-
She can't say no to him, nor can she cut the umbilical cord.
Blog text (30) -
After years of relying on her parents, she finally decided to cut the umbilical cord and live on her own.
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Many young adults find it challenging to cut the umbilical cord and embrace independence from their families.
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He felt it was time to cut the umbilical cord, allowing his children to manage their own lives.
Synonyms
481
2.9
To move apart or stop being together
161
3.5
To separate something so it is no longer joined, for example remove a cable or turn off power
67
5.8
To end a relationship or connection completely by stopping all contact
16
4.0
To come apart from something it is connected to
5
6.6
To stop depending on someone or something and become independent
1
6.2
To free someone or something from limits so they can act more freely
1
7.7
To become independent from your parents and live on your own
Antonyms
How Independent
67
5.8
11
4.9
- Informal
1
6.8
5
3.6
309
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The figurative meaning 'to become independent' follows directly from the literal action of 'cut' + 'umbilical cord' (severing the life-connection), so the intended sense is a straightforward metaphorical extension of the constituents. This metaphoric mapping is common cross-linguistically and thus a B1 learner who knows the words 'cut', 'umbilical' and 'cord' would very likely infer the meaning.
Etymology
Cut the umbilical cord comes from the image of a baby whose doctor cuts the umbilical cord after birth to make the baby separate from the mother. So, to cut the umbilical cord now means to become 'independent' and stop relying on someone else.