cut someone some slack

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cut someone some slack

verb cuts someone some slack · cutting someone some slack · cut someone some slack

idiomatic To make allowances for someone, and not treat a failure severely. He's the new kid on the block and doesn't know the way we do things around here yet. Cut him some slack and let him learn from this.
Similar: give someone a break, give someone enough rope

Translations

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verb Translations

Español	dar cuartelillo, no ser tan duro con alguien, dejar pasar el incidente, tenerle paciencia a alguien, ser paciente con alguien, darle un respiro
Português	dar um tempo, dar uma folga, dar um desconto
Français	donner du mou, lâcher la bride
Deutsch	mit einem blauen Auge davonkommen
Română	scuti

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MLA

"cut someone some slack." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/cut%20someone%20some%20slack. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

cut someone some slack. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/cut%20someone%20some%20slack

Chicago

"cut someone some slack." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/cut%20someone%20some%20slack.

BibTeX

@misc{cut_someone_some_slack_2026,
  title = {cut someone some slack},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/cut%20someone%20some%20slack},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}