clearcut

Plain as day

Clearcut describes something sharply defined with no ambiguity or blurred edges.

A clearcut distinction or clearcut case leaves no room for doubt or interpretation.

The word also refers to a logging practice where every tree in an area is felled, leaving bare ground rather than selectively harvested forest.

Both uses share the sense of complete removal of anything that might obscure or complicate—whether conceptual fuzziness or standing timber.

The evidence made it a clearcut victory for the prosecution.

logging

timber

Wood for construction

clearing · harvest · stumps · silviculture · skidder · bulldozer · replanting · forestry · pulpwood · acreage

obvious

unambiguous

Allowing single interpretation only

indisputable · straightforward · black-and-white · binary · decisive · categorical · evident · apparent · manifest · distinct

deforestation

erosion

Gradual wearing away

landslide · desertification · extinction · environmentalism · conservation · sustainability · watershed · ecosystem · wildlife · monoculture

Categories
Opposites
clarity/definition

clearcutvague

Unclear, ill-defined

murky · ambiguous · unclear · fuzzy · hazy

certainty/decisiveness

clearcutambiguous

Having multiple interpretations

uncertain · inconclusive · debatable · questionable · equivocal

complexity

clearcutcomplicated

Difficult to understand

complex · convoluted · nuanced · intricate · tangled

Family

clearcutting, clearcuts

Familiarity
Top 200,000
Profile
Known to kids · Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Everyday, not technical · Rated G