English
out
Etymology

From Middle English out, oute, from a combination of Old English ūt, from Proto-West Germanic *ūt, from Proto-Germanic *ūt; and Old English ūte, from Proto-Germanic *ūtai; both from Proto-Indo-European *úd.

Cognate with Scots oot, out ("out"), Saterland Frisian uut, uute ("out"), Western Frisian út, Dutch uit, nds-de ut, German aus, Norwegian/Swedish ut, ute ("out; outside"), Danish ud, ude ("out; outside").

Pronunciation
  • (RP, America) enPR: out, IPA: /aʊt/
  • (Australia) IPA: /æɔt/, /æʊt/
  • (Canada) IPA: /ʌʊt/
  • (Scotland) IPA: /ɘʉt/
Adverb

out (not comparable)

  1. Away from the inside or centre.
    The magician tapped the hat, and a rabbit jumped out.
    There was a hole in the bucket, and all the water leaked out.
  2. Away from, or at a distance from, some point of reference or focus.
    Once they had landed, the commandos quickly spread out along the beach.
    For six hours the tide flows out, then for six hours it flows in.
    He lives out in Australia.
    It's three miles out to the island.
    The Joneses don't live here any more. They moved out three months ago.
    1. Specifically, away from home or one's usual place.
      Let’s eat out tonight
    2. Away from the doer, especially vigorously.
      hit out, lash out, speak out, shout out, yell out
  3. (informal) Away, or at a distance, in time (relative to, and usually after, the present or a stated event) (often preceded by a stated time period and followed by "from")
    Five years out from the passing of the law, nothing had actually changed.
    The election is a long way out.
  4. Outside; not indoors.
    Last night we slept out under the stars.
    It's cold out.
  5. (sports) Of the ball or other playing implement, so as to pass or be situated beyond the bounds of the playing area.
    The football caught the edge of the line but then bounced out.
  6. Into a state of non-operation or non-existence.
    Turn the lights out.
    Put the fire out.
    I painted out that nasty mark on the wall.
  7. To the end; completely.
    I haven’t finished. Hear me out.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Psalm 4:23 ↗:
      Deceitful men shall not live out half their days.
  8. Used to intensify or emphasize.
    The place was all decked out for the holidays.
  9. Into a state of existence or visibility.
    The singer is bringing out a new album next month.
    The sun has brought the flowers out.
    1. (of the sun, moon, stars, etc.) So as to be visible in the sky, and not covered by clouds, fog, etc.
      The sun came out after the rain, and we saw a rainbow.
  10. (cricket, baseball) Of a player, so as to be disqualified from playing further by some action of a member of the opposing team (such as being stumped in cricket).
    Wilson was bowled out for five runs.
Synonyms Antonyms
  • (antonym(s) of “not at home”): in
Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations Preposition
  1. From the inside to the outside of; out of. [from 14th c.]
    • c. 1608–1609 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Coriolanus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act V, scene ii]:
      Can you, when you have pushed out your gates the very defender of them, and in a violent popular ignorance given your enemy your shield, think to front his revenges with the easy groans of old women, the virginal palms of your daughters, or with the palsied intercession of such a decayed dotant as you seem to be?
    • 1830, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Adeline:
      Thy roselips and full blue eyes / Take the heart from out my breast.
    • 2012, Thomas Gifford, Woman in the Window:
      After she'd made her single cup of coffee she sat looking out the window into the slushy, halficy backyard and dialed Tony's number on Staten Island.
Synonyms Antonyms
  • (antonym(s) of “away from the inside”): in
Translations Noun

out (plural outs)

  1. A means of exit, escape, reprieve, etc.
    Hyponyms: cop-out, get-out
    They wrote the law to give those organizations an out.
  2. (baseball) A state in which a member of the batting team is removed from play due to the application of various rules of the game such as striking out, hitting a fly ball which is caught by the fielding team before bouncing, etc.
    • 2014, Tom Bentley, Flowering: And Other Stories:
      The first time I saw Amity we were in front of her house playing work-up, a baseball variation where you move from position to position by outs until you get to bat.
  3. (cricket) A dismissal; a state in which a member of the batting team finishes his turn at bat, due to the application of various rules of the game, such as the bowler knocking over the batsman's wicket with the ball.
  4. (poker) A card which can make a hand a winner.
    • 2005, Alison M. Pendergast, Play Winning Poker in No Time, page 57:
      As a beginner, when you are in a hand, you should practice counting your outs, or those live cards left in the deck that can improve your hand.
    • 2006, David Apostolico, Lessons from the Professional Poker Tour, page 21:
      If he did have a bigger ace, I still had at least six outs — the case ace, two nines, and three tens. I could also have more outs if he held anything less than A-K.
  5. (dated) A trip out; an outing.
    • 1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC ↗:
      Us London lawyers don't often get an out; and when we do, we like to make the most of it, you know.
  6. (mostly, in the plural) One who, or that which, is out; especially, one who is out of office.
    Antonyms: in
    • 1827, Benjamin Chew, A Sketch of the Politics, Relations, and Statistics, of the Western World, page 192:
      This memoir has nothing to do with the question between the ins and the outs; it is intended neither to support nor to assail the administration; it is general in its views upon a general and national subject; […]
  7. A place or space outside of something; a nook or corner; an angle projecting outward; an open space.
  8. (printing, dated) A word or words omitted by the compositor in setting up copy; an omission.
Translations Translations Verb

out (outs, present participle outing; simple past and past participle outed)

  1. (transitive) To eject; to expel.
    • 1689, John Selden, Table Talk:
      a king outed of his country
    • 1674, Peter Heylin, Cosmographie in four bookes:
      The French have been outed from their holds.
    • 1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:
      "I outed myself for life that night. I can put up a show fight and exhibition bout, but I'm done for the real thing."
  2. (intransitive) To come or go out; to get out or away; to become public, revealed, or apparent.
    Synonyms: come to light, crop out
    Coordinate term: crop up
    • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act II, scene ii]:
      Truth will out.
    • 1643, John Milton, Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce:
      In which Argument he whose courage can serve him to give the first onset, must look for two severall oppositions: the one from those who having sworn themselves to long custom and the letter of the Text, will not out of the road: the other from those whose grosse and vulgar apprehensions conceit but low of matrimoniall purposes, and in the work of male and female think they have all.
  3. (transitive) To reveal (a person or organization) as having a certain secret, such as a being a secret agent or undercover detective.
  4. (transitive) To reveal (a secret).
    A Brazilian company outed the new mobile phone design.
  5. (transitive, LGBT) To reveal (a person) as LGBT+ (gay, trans, etc).
  6. To kill; to snuff out.
    • 1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC ↗:
      "In my own case, I was beaten about the head by their wings, so we have had a remarkable exhibition of their various methods of offence." "It has been touch and go for our lives," said Lord John, gravely, "and I could not think of a more rotten sort of death than to be outed by such filthy vermin."
Synonyms Translations Translations Translations Adjective

out (not comparable)

  1. Not inside a place one might otherwise be expected to be, especially a place one was formerly or is customarily inside:
    1. Not at home, or not at one's office or place of employment.
      I'm sorry, Mr Smith is out at the moment.
    2. Not in jail, prison, or captivity; freed from confinement.
      Sentenced to five years, he could be out in three with good behavior.
    3. Not inside or within something.
      I worked away cleaning the U-bend until all the gunge was out.
    4. Not fitted or inserted into something.
      The TV won't work with the plug out!
    5. (sports) Of the ball or other playing implement, falling or passing or being situated beyond the bounds of the playing area.
      I thought the ball hit the line, but the umpire said it was out.
  2. Not (or no longer) acceptable or in consideration, play, availability, or operation:
    1. (in various games; used especially of a batsman or batter in cricket or baseball) Dismissed from play under the rules of the game.
      He bowls, Johnson pokes at it ... and ... Johnson is out! Caught behind by Ponsonby!
    2. (of ideas, plans, etc.) Discarded; no longer a possibility.
      Right, so that idea's out. Let's move on to the next one.
    3. (of options) No longer acceptable or permissible.
      I've got diabetes, so cookies are right out.
    4. (of certain services, devices, or facilities) Not available; out of service.
      Power is out in the entire city.
      My wi-fi is out.
    5. (of a user of a service) Not having availability of a service, such as power or communications.
      Most of the city got service back yesterday, but my neighborhood is still out.
    6. (of lamps, fires etc.) Not shining or burning.
      I called round to the house but all the lights were out and no one was home.
    7. (of an organization, etc.) Temporarily not in operation, or not being attended as usual.
      School is out tomorrow due to snow.
      When college is out for the summer, I'll head back to my home state.
      when school gets out today
      After school's out, I go to the library until my mom gets off work.
    8. Unconscious.
      I had a whack on the head and was out for a few seconds.
    9. No longer popular or in fashion.
      Black is out this season. The new black is white.
  3. Open or public (about something).
    1. (LGBT) Openly acknowledging that one is LGBT+ (gay, trans, etc).
      It's no big deal to be out in the entertainment business.
      • 2011, Allan Bérubé, My Desire for History: Essays in Gay, Community, and Labor History:
        I had not come out yet and he was out but wasn't; quite ungay, I would say, and yet gay.
    2. (by extension, uncommon) Open, public; public about or openly acknowledging some (usually specified) identity.
  4. Freed from secrecy.
    My secret is out.
  5. Available to be seen, or to be interacted with in some way:
    1. Released, available for purchase, download or other use.
      Did you hear? Their newest CD is out!
    2. (of flowers) In bloom.
      The garden looks beautiful now that the roses are out.
    3. (of the sun, moon or stars) Visible in the sky; not obscured by clouds.
      The sun is out, and it's a lovely day.
    4. (obsolete) Of a young lady: having entered society and available to be courted.
      • 1814 May 9, [Jane Austen], chapter V, in Mansfield Park: […], volume I, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC ↗, page 98 ↗:
        "Pray, is she out, or is she not?—I am puzzled.—She dined at the Parsonage, with the rest of you, which seemed like being out; and yet she says so little, that I can hardly suppose she is."
  6. Of the tide, at or near its lowest level.
    You can walk to the island when the tide's out.
  7. Without; no longer in possession of; not having any more.
    Synonyms: all outintensive but synonymous>
    Hyponym: fresh out (broadly synonymous)
    Do you have any bread? Sorry, we're out.
  8. (of calculations or measurements) Containing errors or discrepancies; in error by a stated amount.
    Nothing adds up in this report. All these figures are out.
    The measurement was out by three millimetres.
Synonyms Antonyms Related terms
  • (no longer in possession of) run out
Translations Translations
  • French: sorti du placard, out
Interjection
  1. (procedure word, especially, military) A radio procedure word meaning that the station is finished with its transmission and does not expect a response.
    Destruction. Two T-72s destroyed. Three foot mobiles down. Out.
  2. Get out; begone; away!
    • c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):
      Out, damned spot! Out, I say!
Related terms Translations Translations

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