cut corners

Meaning

This phrase means to do something in the easiest, cheapest, or fastest way, often by ignoring rules, safety standards, or quality. It carries a negative connotation, implying that the final result is shoddy, dangerous, or incomplete because proper care was not taken. It is widely used in business, construction, and daily tasks.

Examples

• The builders cut corners on the foundation, and now the house has structural issues.

  The builders cut corners on the foundation, and now the house has structural issues.

• If you cut corners on your preparation, you will definitely fail the exam.

  If you cut corners on your preparation, you will definitely fail the exam.

• We cannot afford to cut corners when it comes to user data security.

  We cannot afford to cut corners when it comes to user data security.

• He always tries to cut corners to finish his chores early, but he has to redo them anyway.

  He always tries to cut corners to finish his chores early, but he has to redo them anyway.

• The company was accused of cutting corners on safety regulations to maximize profits.

  The company was accused of cutting corners on safety regulations to maximize profits.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ They did a bad job because they cut the corners.

  ✓ They did a bad job because they cut corners.

  The idiom is 'cut corners' without the definite article 'the'.

• ✗ He cutted corners to finish the project on time.

  ✓ He cut corners to finish the project on time.

  'Cut' is an irregular verb; its past tense is also 'cut', never 'cutted'.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Don't try to ___ on this recipe; you need to let the dough rise for the full two hours.

  💡 To skip steps or do things the easy way at the expense of quality

  Show answer

  cut corners

• The manufacturing team had to ___ to meet the tight deadline, resulting in several defective units.

  💡 To reduce quality or skip procedures to save time/money

  Show answer

  cut corners