1
2
guts plural
: the inner essential parts
the guts of a car
3
4
: the basic visceral, emotional, or instinctual part of a person
She knew in her gut that he was lying.
Consult more than one financial adviser before making a final choice, and trust your gut.—
Quentin Fottrell
Quentin FottrellMy gut says this is, overall, a terrible idea.—Erica Buist
—often used before another nounErica Buistmaking a gut decision
a gut feeling
"Tony's a very driven guy, and he makes a lot of decisions based on gut instinct," …—Tom Nides
Tom Nides5
: a narrow passage
also
: a narrow waterway or small creek
6
: the sac of silk taken from a silkworm ready to spin its cocoon and drawn out into a thread for use as a snell
7
1
: arising from one's inmost self : visceral
a gut reaction
2
: having strong impact or immediate relevance
gut issues
gutted; gutting
1
a
b
: to extract all the essential passages or portions from
2
a
: to destroy the inside of
fire gutted the building
b
: to destroy the essential power or effectiveness of
inflation gutting the economy
grand unified theory; grand unification theory
Synonyms
Examples of gut in a Sentence
Noun
the guts of the fish
the guts of a machine
the guts of a business deal
That decision took a lot of guts.
I didn't have the guts to do it.
Verb
The salmon is already gutted and filleted.
Critics claim that these reforms will gut the law.
Recent Examples on the WebBryant Stamford, The Courier-Journal, 16 May 2024
These changes can increase inflammation and impact the gut’s ability to metabolize nutrients and produce metabolites, which in turn affects the body’s sensitivity to insulin and its ability to metabolize glucose.
—Kayla Hui, Verywell Health, 16 May 2024
Emily Mullin, WIRED, 14 Feb. 2024
Emerging evidence suggests that individuals with fibromyalgia may have alterations in their gut microbiota composition.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 27 June 2023
Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee, 21 May 2024
The waves of dismissals, which already have hit thousands across departments including sales, human resources and virtually the entire Supercharger division, are expected to gut significant parts of Tesla, which started the year with more than 140,000 employees.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 20 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for gut 
Noun
During exercise, blood flow is rerouted to the working muscles and away from other tissues like the liver and gut.
—Bryant Stamford, The Courier-Journal, 16 May 2024
These changes can increase inflammation and impact the gut’s ability to metabolize nutrients and produce metabolites, which in turn affects the body’s sensitivity to insulin and its ability to metabolize glucose.
—Kayla Hui, Verywell Health, 16 May 2024
Adjective
So Van Tyne and her team looked to a source that’s teeming with gut bacteria: wastewater.
—Emily Mullin, WIRED, 14 Feb. 2024
Emerging evidence suggests that individuals with fibromyalgia may have alterations in their gut microbiota composition.
—Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 27 June 2023
Verb
Lawmakers on Monday moved to gut the language in Senate Bill 828 and replace it with an urgency bill that will push the date for the first in a series of pay increases from June 1 to July 1.
—Lindsey Holden, Sacramento Bee, 21 May 2024
The waves of dismissals, which already have hit thousands across departments including sales, human resources and virtually the entire Supercharger division, are expected to gut significant parts of Tesla, which started the year with more than 140,000 employees.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 20 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for gut
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gut.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near gut
Cite this Entry
“Gut.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gut. Accessed 5 Jun. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
gut
2 of 2 verb
gutted; gutting
1
: to remove the entrails from
scale and gut a fish
2
: to destroy the inside of
fire gutted the building
Medical Definition
gut
1 of 2 noun1
a
: digestive tract
also
: part of the digestive tract and especially the intestine or stomach
the mix of bacteria making up the flora of the gut —W. E. Leary
W. E. Leary
b
: abdomen sense 1a, belly
—usually used in plural —not often in formal use
his huge gut hung far below his belt—L. M. Uris
L. M. Uris2
: catgut
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