切り詰める

• Reading: きりつめる
• Romaji: kiritsumeru
• Kanji breakdown: 切 (setsu/ki) — cut; 詰 (kitsu) — pack tightly, compress, close
• Pronunciation: /ki.ɾi.tsɯ.me.ɾɯ/

Meaning

To cut down drastically; to economise; to reduce expenditure; to shorten or compress a document, schedule, or period.

A Group 2 (ichidan) verb combining the sense of cutting with packing or compressing tightly. Commonly used in financial contexts to mean tightening one's belt or drastically reducing expenses. It can also mean shortening a piece of writing or a timeline. The image is of cutting away all excess until something is as compact and minimal as possible. Compare with 削減する, which is more bureaucratic and neutral in tone.

Examples

1. 不景気に備えて生活費を切り詰め、毎月の支出を最低限に抑えた。 In preparation for the recession, I cut back on living expenses and kept my monthly outgoings to a minimum.
2. 長すぎる報告書を半分の分量に切り詰めるよう、上司から指示された。 My supervisor instructed me to cut the overly long report down to half its length.
3. 予算を切り詰めた結果、プロジェクトの質まで落ちてしまった。 As a result of cutting the budget so drastically, the quality of the project suffered too.

Usage Guide

Context: finance, household management, editing, budgeting

Tone: practical

Origin & History

Compound of 切る (to cut) and 詰める (to pack tightly, to compress, to close up). Together they convey cutting back until everything is maximally condensed and no excess remains.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: All classes