dropping out

Verb

drop out (third-person singular simple present drops out, present participle dropping out, simple past and past participle dropped out)

1. (idiomatic) To leave (school, a race, etc.) prematurely and voluntarily.
   • Nothing went well in high school, so he dropped out.
2. To opt out of conventional society.
3. (usually, electronic signal) To be lost or momentarily interrupted.
   • I can't make phone calls because the line keeps dropping out.
4. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see drop, out.
   • Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby.1921 June, Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real”, in Harper’s Bazar, volume LVI, number 6 (2504 overall), New York, N.Y.: International Magazine Company, →ISSN, →OCLC
5. (intransitive, Of a trapdoor or similar) To give way under someone.
   • The board he was walking on dropped out.

   Synonyms:

   fall out

6. (figuratively, intransitive, usually, Of the ground, floor, snow) To cause someone to slip and/or fall down.
   • The ground dropped out from under him.

   Synonyms:

   fall out

See all 7 meanings of drop out