Clear-cut
What it means
Definite and free from confusing uncertainty.
Reach for it when describing evidence, choices, or results whose boundaries are easy to recognize
The recount produced a clear-cut result accepted by every observer.
Words to choose between 6
| playful | |
|---|---|
| everyday |
|
| professional | |
| formal |
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playful
black-and-white
Fits when a deliberately binary contrast suits informal speech
Careful The phrase can erase legitimate nuance and oversimplify human situations.
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playful
open-and-shut
Fits when evidence appears to settle a case immediately
Careful This idiom is legalistic and overconfident before all evidence is reviewed.
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everyday
Fits when few complications make the matter easy to follow
Careful A straightforward process can still end in an uncertain result.
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professional
Fits when the evidence or action settles the matter
Careful Decisive may praise forceful action rather than clarity.
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professional
Fits when the conclusion has firm limits or certainty
Careful Definite can reflect confidence without showing that the evidence is simple.
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formal
Fits when only one reasonable interpretation remains
Careful Technical unambiguity leaves open whether the decision itself was easy.
Opposites 3
- ambiguous
- uncertain
- borderline
Common phrases 3
-
clear-cut result
The laboratory produced a clear-cut result on the contamination question.
-
clear-cut choice
Once safety data arrived, the safer route became the clear-cut choice.
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clear-cut case
It looked like a clear-cut case until the missing receipt appeared.
Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Flame, not lame, American accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC0 Updated