The cutthroat competition in this industry has driven many small companies out of business.

cutthroat 是由动词 cut（切割）和名词 throat（喉咙）组成的复合词，字面意思是"割喉"，引申为"残酷无情的"。 cutthroat competition 指"残酷的竞争"，形容竞争激烈到像割喉一样致命的地步。