Where does the phrase cut and dry come from?
Where does the phrase cut and dry come from?
Origin. Used as early as the late 1700’s. The most common explanation for the origin of this idiom is that it alludes to the already cut and dried herbs, ready to use and sold in shops, as opposed to fresh growing herbs. Some, however, believe it to allude to cut and dried pieces of wood.
Is the phrase cut and dry or cut and dried?
Most standard dictionaries accept both forms, giving “cut and dry” as a variant or less common version. To say that something is “cut and dried”—a decision, speech, proposal, etc. —means that it’s been decided or settled in advance. Some dictionaries add that it can mean clear and unambiguous.
What is another way of saying cut and dried?
synonyms for cut-and-dried definite. destined. familiar. fated. fixed.
What does pretty cut and dry mean?
/ˌkʌt ən ˈdraɪd/ already decided and unlikely to be changed: We need a cut-and-dried decision by the end of the week. simple and easy to understand: Most fire investigations are pretty cut and dried, but this one has left more questions than answers.
What does it mean to be left high and dry?
Definition of high and dry 1 : being out of reach of the current or tide or out of the water. 2 : being in a helpless or abandoned position.
What is a cut and dry personality?
lacking in originality or spontaneity; routine; boring: a lecture that was cut-and-dried.
How do you use cut and dry in a sentence?
One cannot always meet the wishes of lawyers to have everything cut and dried. However, before we proceed any further we must have the method of policing cut and dried. People feel that this decision is cut and dried. It is all cut and dried before they get into the chamber.
What does it mean to see the world in shades of grey?
It was between people who saw the world in black-and-white terms and those who saw it, instead, in complex shades of gray. “The more people see the world in black-and-white terms,” he said, “regardless of whether they’re on the right or the left, the harder it is for them to change their views on anything.
