cut and dried
already decided and unchangeable
TRANSLATION
cut and dried = von vorneherein festgelegt, in Stein gemeißelt, entschieden --- GOOGLE INDEX cut and dried: approximately 1,800,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Business is not a CUT AND DRIED mechanical process driven solely by financial frameworks.
- former British Petroleum CEO Lord Brown
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To be fair, not all cases are as CUT AND DRIED as people think. Legal minds, years later, still debate the legal merit of a multimillion-dollar suit against McDonald's for serving coffee that may, or may not, have been too hot. Every year, more and more lawsuits, though, beg the question, "What were they thinking?"
TheStreet.com
- former British Petroleum CEO Lord Brown
---
To be fair, not all cases are as CUT AND DRIED as people think. Legal minds, years later, still debate the legal merit of a multimillion-dollar suit against McDonald's for serving coffee that may, or may not, have been too hot. Every year, more and more lawsuits, though, beg the question, "What were they thinking?"
TheStreet.com
Did you
know?
cut and dried
idiom
- already decided and unlikely to be changed
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
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The origin of the expression "cut and dried" is not really cut and dried.
One theory is that it stems from the former practice of cutting meat into strips and drying it to make so-called "jerky" or "beef jerky". This was a common way for American pioneers and cowboys to preserve meat to take on long journeys or on the cattle trail.
The Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins suggests that the expression derives from the ancient process of cutting and drying timber in order to "season" it. Still others insist that the source is from drying and cutting hay, flowers or herbs.
Whatever the true origin, the common thread in all of these theories is the act of cutting and drying, which results in an end product that can't be modified. Thus figuratively speaking, when something is cut and dried, it is clear and already established.
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USAGE NOTE
This expression is sometimes used in negative statements. For example:
"This issue is not cut and dried. We need to discuss it further."
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SYNONYMS
set in stone, black and white, settled, definite, ordained
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PRACTICE OWAD TODAY
"The conference agenda is CUT AND DRIED, the printer delivered the invitation yesterday."
---
QUICK, before you go, REFRESH YOUR BRAIN!
because next-day reviews boost memory by 70%
What was yesterday's OWAD?
unecht, gefälscht, betrügerisch, erfunden = B____
"Beware of B____ e-mails that claim you have won a lot of money."-
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BOGUS
idiom
- already decided and unlikely to be changed
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
The origin of the expression "cut and dried" is not really cut and dried.
One theory is that it stems from the former practice of cutting meat into strips and drying it to make so-called "jerky" or "beef jerky". This was a common way for American pioneers and cowboys to preserve meat to take on long journeys or on the cattle trail.
The Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins suggests that the expression derives from the ancient process of cutting and drying timber in order to "season" it. Still others insist that the source is from drying and cutting hay, flowers or herbs.
Whatever the true origin, the common thread in all of these theories is the act of cutting and drying, which results in an end product that can't be modified. Thus figuratively speaking, when something is cut and dried, it is clear and already established.
---
USAGE NOTE
This expression is sometimes used in negative statements. For example:
"This issue is not cut and dried. We need to discuss it further."
---
SYNONYMS
set in stone, black and white, settled, definite, ordained
---
PRACTICE OWAD TODAY
"The conference agenda is CUT AND DRIED, the printer delivered the invitation yesterday."
---
QUICK, before you go, REFRESH YOUR BRAIN!
because next-day reviews boost memory by 70%
What was yesterday's OWAD?
unecht, gefälscht, betrügerisch, erfunden = B____
"Beware of B____ e-mails that claim you have won a lot of money."-
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BOGUS
