🗓️ Idiom: Cutthroat Business (n)
💬 Meaning
- A business or industry where the competition is very strong and often unfair.
- A situation where people will do anything to win or succeed, even if it hurts others.
🧠 Example Sentences
- The fashion world is a cutthroat business, only the toughest survive.
- Startups often face cutthroat business environments with little room for mistakes.
- It’s a cutthroat business, so you need to be smart and fast to stay ahead.
🏛️ Origin
The term “cutthroat” was first used in the 1500s to describe violent criminals. In modern business English, it means people will do anything to succeed. A “cutthroat business” is one where there is no mercy, just hard competition.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
With so many companies fighting for market share, it’s a __________.
Answer
cutthroat business
2. Choose the correct meaning of “cutthroat business”:
A) A kind and fair company
B) A business with very strong and aggressive competition
C) A slow and relaxed industry
D) A new small business
Answer
B) A business with very strong and aggressive competition
3. Rewrite the sentence using the idiom:
“This industry is very competitive, and companies often act unfairly.” → Change the sentence using: cutthroat business
Answer
This industry is a cutthroat business.