cut up

phrasal verb·4 senses·particle up

Meanings

1

Cut something into smaller pieces

Finishing

Why “up”? Filling to the top. Reaching the upper limit means finishing.

“Cut the vegetables up into chunks.”
Chop the vegetables into chunks.
“He cut up the apple for the child.”
He chopped the apple into small pieces for the child.
2

Make someone deeply upset or distressed

Troubleuncommon

Why “up”? Something normal is disturbed. Feelings, systems, machines, or behavior become noisy, troubled, or out of control.

“She was really cut up about the news.”
She was deeply upset by the news.
“He was cut up after the argument.”
He was deeply upset after the argument.
3

Behave in a wild or noisy way to attract attention

Appearancerare

Why “up”? Rising into view. What comes up becomes present and visible.

“The kids were cutting up in the back of the car.”
The kids were behaving wildly and noisily in the back of the car.
“The boys cut up during the school photo.”
The boys behaved wildly and noisily during the school photo.
4

Overtake another driver suddenly and dangerously

Troubleuncommon
“A van cut me up on the motorway.”
A van swerved dangerously in front of me on the motorway.
“A taxi cut us up at the roundabout.”
A taxi moved dangerously in front of us at the roundabout.

Don't confuse with

cut upcut out

Cut up means cut something into small pieces. Cut out means remove something by cutting.

cut upcut down

Cut up means make someone deeply upset or distressed. Cut down means reduce the amount of something.

Test yourself

“Cut the vegetables up into chunks.” What does it mean?

Nearby in the meaning map

Sink In connects verbs by particle pattern, contrast pairs, and shared base verbs.

cut down

A contrast learners often mix up

Reduce the amount of something; Fell a tree by cutting at its base; Kill or seriously injure many people quickly

cut out

A contrast learners often mix up

Remove by cutting

act up

Same up pattern: trouble

Behave badly or stop working properly

add up

Same up pattern: finishing

Combine into a larger total; Make sense or seem true

blow up

Same up pattern: appearance

Explode or be destroyed by an explosion; Inflate something by filling it with air; Suddenly become very angry; Enlarge a photograph or image; (of a storm or argument) develop quickly into something serious

break up

Same up pattern: finishing

Break into pieces; End a relationship or gathering

bring up

Same up pattern: appearance

Mention or raise a topic

call up

Same up pattern: appearance

Telephone someone; Order someone to join military service; Display information on a screen or computer; Bring a memory or feeling vividly to mind; Select a player for a higher-level team

Practice “cut up” in Sink In

Drill this and 600+ phrasal verbs with spaced repetition, organised by particle.

App StoreGoogle Play