cut the cord
To end a child's overdependence on or overattachment to their parents.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“It is time for him to cut the cord and live alone.”
“After graduating from college, she finally decided to cut the cord and move into her own apartment.”
“Although his parents still offered to pay his rent, he felt it was necessary to cut the cord to truly establish his own independence.”
The idiom is a variant of the phrase cut the umbilical cord, a surgical necessity adapted as a metaphor for the termination of dependency. No specific date of idiomatic emergence or individual originator is recorded in the source material.
- 01
clear cut
Straightforward, obvious, simple, or basic.
- 02
cut a dash
To make a display of oneself; to give a conspicuous impression.
- 03
cut a deal
To reach a negotiated agreement.
- 04
cut a figure
To present an image; to make an impression.
- 05
cut a rug
To dance, especially in a vigorous manner and in one of the dance styles of the first half of the twentieth century.
- 06
cut a swath
Alternative form of cut a wide swath.
- 07
cut a wide swath
To behave in an expansive, flagrantly showy, or pushy manner, especially in public venues; to exert sweeping influence.
- 08
cut about
To go around (move from person to person).
Last updated August 10, 2026