Etymology From Middle English gut, gutte, gotte, from Old English gutt (usually in plural guttas (“guts, entrails”)), from Proto-Germanic *gut-, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰewd- (“to pour”). Related to English gote (“drain”), Old English ġēotan (“to pour”). More at gote, yote. The verb is from Middle English gutten, gotten (“to gut”).
Informal The abdomen of a person, especially one that is enlarged.
You've developed quite a beer gut since I last met you.
3
The intestines of an animal used to make strings of a tennis racket or violin, etc.
4
A person's emotional, visceral self.
I have a funny feeling in my gut.
5
Informal A class that is not demanding or challenging.
You should take Intro Astronomy: it's a gut.
6
A narrow passage of water.
the Gut of Canso
There is a tide in the affairs of men, / Which, taken any way you please, is bad, / And strands them in forsaken guts and creeks / No decent soul would think of visiting.1887 March 21, Rudyard Kipling, “Kidnapped”, in Plain Tales from the Hills, Calcutta: Thacker, Spink and Co.; London: W. Thacker & Co., published 1888, →OCLC, page 111:
7
The sac of silk taken from a silkworm when ready to spin its cocoon, for the purpose of drawing it out into a thread. When dry, it is exceedingly strong, and is used as the snood of a fishing line.
Etymology From Middle English gut, gutte, gotte, from Old English gutt (usually in plural guttas (“guts, entrails”)), from Proto-Germanic *gut-, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰewd- (“to pour”). Related to English gote (“drain”), Old English ġēotan (“to pour”). More at gote, yote. The verb is from Middle English gutten, gotten (“to gut”).
1
To eviscerate.
Holonym: field dress
The fisherman guts the fish before cooking them.
1 more example
The lioness gutted her prey.
2
To remove or destroy the most important parts of.
Fire gutted the building.
Congress gutted the welfare bill.
2 more examples
The fuselage came to rest 522 feet from the initial impact point on a magnetic heading of 175 degrees. The complete fuselage from the nose section, including the nose gear section, aft to the empennage, was extensively burned and gutted by fire. The cabin area, which consisted of only the lower fuselage, was melted and the metal was visible in the ice.1982 July 20, National Transportation Safety Board, “1.12 Wreckage and Impact Information”, in Aircraft Accident Report: Pilgrim Airlines Flight 458, deHavilland DHC-6-100, N127PM, Near Providence, Rhode Island, February 21, 1982, archived from the original on 03 Apr 2024, page 4:
He gutted the kitchen, replacing an outdated scheme with a sexy mélange of mirror, lacquer, Rouge Griotte marble, and African mahogany.2026 May 23, Sam Cochran, “Show of Hands”, in Architectural Digest, volume 83, number 4, page 69:
3
To dishearten; to crush (the spirits of).
They were gutted by the court's decision.
It's no worse than what he said in Miami, but hearing him repeat it, attribute it to my father...it guts me. “That's who your family is. Who you are. Stangers—Stanleys, whatever your fucking names are,” he spits.2016 October 4, Danielle Pearl, In Ruins, Forever, →ISBN:
1 more example
What's bothering me is that I'd felt more for him than I realized, and it guts me that it's over before it can really get going.2017 October 4, Angela Quarles, Earning It: A Romantic Comedy, Unsealed Room Press, →ISBN:
Etymology From Middle English gut, gutte, gotte, from Old English gutt (usually in plural guttas (“guts, entrails”)), from Proto-Germanic *gut-, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰewd- (“to pour”). Related to English gote (“drain”), Old English ġēotan (“to pour”). More at gote, yote. The verb is from Middle English gutten, gotten (“to gut”).