cut in

verb

To intrude or interrupt.

“Cut in line”

Meanings

verbcut in (third-person singular simple present cuts in, present participle cutting in, simple past and past participle cut in)

present singular third person cuts in · participle present cutting in

  1. To intrude or interrupt.

    “If something breaks during the day, work hours up until the evening, we’ll cut in — if we’re in the middle of, let’s say, a magazine program or a podcast on tape or a re-air of the game,” Radovich said.

    2023 March 8, Jonathan Tannenwald, “CBS is launching a 24/7 soccer channel online”, in The Philadelphia Inquirer
    1 more example

    Taxon concepts […] are being produced at a fast rate and, as long as some minimal aspect of the rules of nomenclature laid down in the relevant code is fulfilled, these concepts can become permanent even when they may be deeply flawed scientifically. It is an ideal situation for someone to cut in – inappropriately – and produce large quantities of taxon names.

    2023, Wolfgang Denzer, Hinrich Kaiser, “Naming And Gaming: The Illicit Taxonomic Practice Of 'Nomenclatural Harvesting' And How To Avoid It”, in Journal of Zoology, volume 320, number 3, page 162
    1. To take up a portion of.

      This is cutting in on my free time.

    2. To join a queue in the middle, as opposed to at the back.

      Cut in line

      Synonyms: jump the queue, push in, queue-jump

    3. To pull in front of another vehicle in traffic, especially to do so dangerously or unfairly.
    4. hobbiesTo begin riding a wave in front of someone else whose legitimate turn it is.
    5. datedidiomaticTo dance with someone who is already dancing by replacing his or her partner.
  2. When painting, to paint edges, corners, or trim in preparation for rolling larger areas.
  3. slangtransitiveTo include; to allow (someone) to participate in something.

    You can cut me in on the next hand of this card game.

    1. slangtransitiveTo give (someone) a share of something.
    2. intransitiveslangtransitiveTo take a share of something; to push one's way into a project, game or plan.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo join a queue in the middle, as opposed to at the back.

More synonyms by meaning

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 插隊 /插队
  • 插隊 /插队 (chāduì)to join a queue in the middle
Finnish etuilla, maalata reunat
  • etuillato join a queue in the middle
  • maalata reunatto paint edges and corners
French couper, resquiller
  • couperto join a queue in the middle
  • resquillerto join a queue in the middle
  • relayerto replace somebody's dancing partner
German sich vordrängeln, abklatschen
  • sich vordrängelnto join a queue in the middle
  • abklatschento replace somebody's dancing partner
Polish wcinać się w kolejkę, wciąć się w kolejkę
  • wcinać się w kolejkęto join a queue in the middle
  • wciąć się w kolejkęto join a queue in the middle
  • odbijaćto replace somebody's dancing partner
  • odbićto replace somebody's dancing partner
  • odcinaćto paint edges and corners
  • odciąćto paint edges and corners
Spanish recortar, rematar
  • recortarto paint edges and corners
  • rematarto paint edges and corners
Swedish smita före
  • smita företo join a queue in the middle
Cite this entry
APA

cut in. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cut%20in

MLA

“cut in.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cut%20in. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cut in,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cut%20in.

Source: cut in on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.