CUTTING EDGE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does cutting edge mean? 

• CUTTING EDGE (noun)
  The noun CUTTING EDGE has 2 senses:

1. the position of greatest importance or advancement; the leading position in any movement or field

2. the sharp cutting side of the blade of a knife

  Familiarity information: CUTTING EDGE used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CUTTING EDGE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The position of greatest importance or advancement; the leading position in any movement or field

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

cutting edge; forefront; vanguard

Context example:

the idea of motion was always to the forefront of his mind and central to his philosophy

Hypernyms ("cutting edge" is a kind of...):

perspective; position; view (a way of regarding situations or topics etc.)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The sharp cutting side of the blade of a knife

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

cutting edge; knife edge

Hypernyms ("cutting edge" is a kind of...):

edge (a sharp side formed by the intersection of two surfaces of an object)

Holonyms ("cutting edge" is a part of...):

blade (the flat part of a tool or weapon that (usually) has a cutting edge)

edge tool (any cutting tool with a sharp cutting edge (as a chisel or knife or plane or gouge))

 Context examples 

The cutting edge of an incisor tooth.

(Incisal Edge, NCI Thesaurus)

The team uses cutting edge genetic techniques to help diagnose children around the world who have disorders that are difficult to characterize.

(“Sixth sense” may be more than just a feeling, NIH)

A long, hollow needle with a tapered cutting edge on one end and a handle with a place to attach a syringe on the other end.

(Jamshidi needle, NCI Dictionary)

He no longer worried for fear that the sharp, cutting edges should slip and mar his work.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

A College of American Pathologists (CAP) accredited biorepository with the primary objective of long-term acquisition and storage of a large number of cancer, normal and diseased biospecimens obtained from patients with Informed Consent, and related data for the purpose of supporting cutting edge research.

(Biopathology Center, NCI Thesaurus)