top-slicev.
/ˈtɒpslʌɪs/, U.S. /ˈtɑpˌslaɪs/ 1. transitive. Mining. To work (ore, a seam, etc.) by mining successive slices from the top downwards, the material overlying each slice being made to cave in once the ore has been extracted.
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society > occupation and work > industry > mining > mine [verb (transitive)] > by specific method
opencast1764
hydraulic1868
strip mine1934
1905 M. C. Ihlseng & E. B. Wilson Man. Mining (ed. 4) i. iii. 79 (caption) A System of Top-slicing the Ore.
1973 L. J. Thomas Introd. Mining vi. 209 Small pillars that could be top sliced are more likely to be recovered by cut and fill methods or to be abandoned.
2019 C. Alexander et al. in C. D. Hebert & S. W. Hoffman 2019 Rapid Excavation & Tunneling Conf. Proc. 1212 Minimize seismic potential by elimination of pillars using a true underhand longwall to top slice the 30 Vein.
2.
a. transitive. British. Finance. To assess (the taxable gain on a life-assurance policy or other investment) through top slicing (top slicing n. 2a).
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1967 Jrnl. Inst. Actuaries 93 68 A life assurance company should..be regarded as any ordinary company and be allowed to top-slice the whole of its franked investment income.
2012 M. McLaughlin Tax Planning 2012/13 ix. 381 Chargeable gains are £6,000 top sliced over nine years.
b. transitive. Chiefly British. To take or reallocate (a specific part of a budget, income, etc.) for a particular purpose.
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1992 Guardian 17 July 20/7 It may well be..that this [programme] is far better focused and targeted than previous urban programmes... But..it is top-slicing existing urban money so that there are more losers than winners.
1999 Arch. at Millennium 1991–9 (28th Rep. Royal. Comm. Hist. MSS) 48/2 The money was top-sliced from the overall HE budget and then allocated to achieve worthwhile objectives.
2014 Daily Tel. 5 Sept. 4/4 Graduates already face having 9 per cent of their salary top-sliced to pay their university loan.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2022).
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