cut up

verb, adjective

Forms cuts up cutting up

1. verb (intransitive, literally) To cut upward.
2. verb (transitive) To cut into smaller pieces, parts, or sections. “With a little practice, you can cut up a whole chicken yourself for frying.”
3. verb (transitive, informal) To lacerate; to wound by multiple lacerations; to injure or damage by cutting, or as if by cutting. “The attackers cut him up pretty bad.”
4. verb (transitive, idiomatic) To distress mentally or emotionally.
5. verb (transitive, idiomatic, dated) To severely criticize or censure; to subject to hostile criticism. “The reviewer cut up the book mercilessly.”
6. verb (intransitive, idiomatic) To behave like a clown or jokester (a cut-up); to misbehave; to act in a playful, comical, boisterous, or unruly manner to elicit laughter, attention, etc. “We need to talk about Johnny's tendency to cut up in class.”
7. verb (transitive, idiomatic, UK, Ireland) To move aggressively in front of another vehicle while driving.
8. verb (intransitive) To disintegrate; to break into pieces.
9. adjective Having been cut into smaller pieces. “Put the cut up vegetables in the pot.”
10. adjective Wounded with multiple lacerations. “He is cut up pretty bad.”
11. adjective (idiomatic, UK, Australia) Emotionally upset; mentally distressed. “She was seriously cut up over her dog disappearing.”
12. adjective (slang, informal) Muscular and lean. “I go to the gym to get stronger and cut up.”

Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “cut up”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details