cut no ice
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Be of no account, make no impression, presumably borrowed from figure skating.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “cut no ice” mean?
Be of no account, make no impression, presumably borrowed from figure skating.
Is “cut no ice” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.