Cut (earthworks)

In civil engineering, a cut or cutting is where soil or rock from a relative rise is removed.

Cuts are typically used in road, rail, and canal construction to reduce a route's length and grade. Cut and fill construction uses the spoils from cuts to fill in defiles to create straight routes at steady grades cost-effectively.

Cuts are used as alternatives to indirect routes, embankments, or viaducts. They also have the advantage of comparatively lower noise pollution than elevated or at-grade solutions.

In river management, the term cut or cutting is also used, which refers to the action of short-cutting a meander, in order to speed a waterway's flow.