“cutthroat competition”是由“cutthroat”与“competition”构成的复合名词词组，词源可追溯至17世纪的英语俚语——“cutthroat”本义为“割喉咙的人”，最初用于形容“致命的暴力行为”，19世纪中期逐渐从“物理暴力”引申为“精神与利益层面的无情碾压”，与“competition”（竞争）结合后，固化为核心语义：“（为争夺利益、资源、机会等而进行的）残酷无情、不择手段的竞争、自杀性竞争、割喉式竞争、割颈式竞争”。其核心特征是“残酷无情、不择手段以击败对手”，全程带强烈贬义，既可用于正式书面语（如财经报道、学术分析），也可用于口语，是描述“激烈且无规则竞争”的高频表达，区别于普通的“fierce competition”（激烈竞争），更强调“以牺牲削减自身利润为代价的自杀式竞争，更是为了赢而不惜伤害他人利益的竞争，功利性与攻击性颇强”的残酷性，深度贴合“利益至上、弱肉强食”。如：
The primary election turned into cutthroat competition, with candidates releasing negative ads to destroy each other’s reputations.
党内初选变成了残酷的竞争，候选人发布负面广告以摧毁彼此的声誉。
The tech industry is known for cutthroat competition, where companies steal ideas and undercut prices to drive rivals out of business.
科技行业以残酷竞争闻名，企业窃取创意、压低价格以迫使竞争对手倒闭。
There’s cutthroat competition among the suitors for her hand—they even badmouth each other to win her favor.
追求她的人之间存在残酷的竞争——他们甚至互相诋毁以赢得她的好感。
In some circles, marriage has become cutthroat competition for social status, with families comparing wealth and connections.
在某些圈子里，婚姻成了争夺社会地位的残酷竞争，家庭之间比拼财富与人脉。
Cutthroat competition for university spots means students have to sacrifice hobbies to focus solely on exams.
大学名额的残酷竞争意味着学生必须放弃爱好，全身心专注于考试。
She was tired of the cutthroat competition in the dating scene—everyone seemed more focused on ‘winning’ than finding true connection.
她厌倦了约会圈的残酷竞争——每个人似乎更专注于“赢”，而非寻找真正的联结。
The two forces engaged in cutthroat competition for control of the strategic pass, with neither side willing to retreat.
两支军队为争夺战略要隘展开残酷竞争，双方都不愿撤退。
He dropped out of the cutthroat competition for her love, realizing he didn’t want to hurt others just to be with her.
他退出了争夺她爱情的残酷竞争，意识到自己不想为了和她在一起而伤害别人。
You want to be rich? Then get used to cutthroat competition—this business doesn’t reward nice guys; it rewards those who are willing to take what they want.
你想变富？那就习惯残酷的竞争——这行不奖励好人，只奖励那些愿意夺取自己想要的东西的人。《华尔街》
If you want to survive here, you need to understand—this isn’t a office job, it’s cutthroat competition. One mistake, and someone else will take your spot.
如果你想在这儿活下去，就得明白——这不是一份普通的办公室工作，这是残酷的竞争。一个错误，别人就会抢走你的位置。《穿普拉达的女王》
The global smartphone market is facing cutthroat competition—brands are slashing prices, launching new models every month, and even suing each other over patents.
全球智能手机市场正面临着残酷的竞争——各品牌纷纷降价，每月推出新机型，甚至就专利问题相互起诉。（2023六级）
In the world of professional sports, the cutthroat competition often leads athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs, just to stay ahead of their rivals.
在职业体育领域，残酷的竞争往往导致运动员使用提高成绩的药物，只是为了领先于对手。（2024研考）
Many parents worry that cutthroat competition in after-school classes will make their children lose interest in learning—kids are forced to take 5 or 6 classes a week just to ‘not fall behind’.
许多家长担心，课后班的激烈竞争会让他们的孩子失去学习兴趣——孩子们被迫每周上5到6节课，只是为了“不落后”。（2025年江苏高考英语阅读理解C篇）
“cutthroat competition”的核心考点集中在三方面：
一是核心语义的精准性，该词组绝非普通“激烈竞争”（fierce competition），而是强调“为赢不择手段、伤害他人利益”的“残酷无情”，需通过语境中的“负面行为”（如badmouth, sue, force）判断，这是语义猜测题的高频易错点；
二是语法特征的规范性，作为可数名词短语，表泛指时可加不定冠词（a cutthroat competition），表特指时加定冠词（the cutthroat competition，如“某领域的竞争”），复数形式为“cutthroat competitions”，完形填空常考查冠词搭配及可数性；
三是语境的适配性，可用于正式（财经、学术）与非正式（口语、影视）语境，但全程带贬义，若题干语境为“积极竞争”（如“团队间良性比拼”），则绝对不可使用，需与“healthy competition”（良性竞争）严格区分。
