cut one's losses

Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word cut one's losses. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word cut one's losses, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say cut one's losses in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word cut one's losses you have here. The definition of the word cut one's losses will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition ofcut one's losses, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.

English

Verb

cut one's losses (third-person singular simple present cuts one's losses, present participle cutting one's losses, simple past and past participle cut one's losses)

  1. To discontinue something to put a stop to continued losses after facing that it is unlikely it will ever bear fruit.
    • 2007, Catherine Weber, A Woman's Guide to Overcoming Depression, Baker Books, →ISBN, page 47:
      But our culture has reinforced the belief that a good marriage just happens, and if it doesn't, you should simply cut your losses and move on to the next partner. After all, that's what we see in the movies.
    • 2011, Ann C. Logue, Day Trading For Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 43:
      I mentioned already in this chapter that you need to cut your losses before they drag you down. No matter how much it hurts and no matter how much you believe that you are right, you need to close out a losing position and move on.
    • 2017, Meera Lester, Rituals for Life: Find Meaning in Your Everyday Moments, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 174:
      Sometimes when things are not going as you expected, it's better to cut your losses and move on than to hang on and deal with the stress, financial drain, emotional drag, and loss of time.

Translations

Further reading