out

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.
   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 before, a stated event, or into the future) (often preceded by a stated time period and followed by "from" or "to")
   • Five weeks out from the passage of the law, something has to change.
   • The election is a long way out.
4. Outside; not indoors.
   • Last night we slept out under the stars.
   • It's cold out.
5. 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.
7. To the end; completely; so that nothing remains.
   • I haven’t finished. Hear me out.
   • Sorry love, we've got no bananas. We've sold out.
   1. Shows that an activity has been completed to the point of exhaustion.
      • After hours at the party, she was all danced out.
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. (usually, moon, stars) 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. So as to be disqualified from playing further by some action of a member of the opposing team (such as being stumped in cricket or a forced out in baseball).
    • Wilson was bowled out for five runs.
    • First ball hit me on the 'and, second 'ad me on the knee, the third was in my eye, the fourth bowled me out.1876, The School newspaper Vol. [2 issues of vols. 31 and 32]., page 66

Preposition

out

1. (informal, proscribed, sometimes) From the inside to the outside of; out of.
   • throw it out the window; get it out your mind
   • We are gonna get evicted. —If your fat butt fits out the door, that is.

   Synonyms:

   through

Noun

out (plural outs)

1. A means of exit, escape, reprieve, etc.
   • They wrote the law to give those organizations an out.
   • What's my out if things go wrong?
2. 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.
   • 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.2014, Tom Bentley, Flowering: And Other Stories
3. 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. A card which can make a hand a winner.
   • 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.2005, Alison M. Pendergast, Play Winning Poker in No Time, page 57
   • 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.2006, David Apostolico, Lessons from the Professional Poker Tour, page 21
5. (dated) A trip out; an outing.
   • Us London lawyers don't often get an out; and when we do, we like to make the most of it, you know.1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC
6. (in plural) One who, or that which, is out; especially, one who is out of office.
   • 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; […]1827, Benjamin Chew, A Sketch of the Politics, Relations, and Statistics, of the Western World, page 192

   Antonyms:

   in

7. A place or space outside of something; a nook or corner; an angle projecting outward; an open space.
8. (dated) A word or words omitted by the compositor in setting up copy; an omission.
9. (colloquial) An outtake.
   • It's an interesting film. I've always felt that he made it out of our outs [outtakes]: which was like he was trying to prove something.2015, Keith Beattie, Trent Griffiths, D. A. Pennebaker: Interviews
10. (obsolete) A dram glass.
    • […] one gentleman called to the waiter, 'Bring me a quartern of gin and two outs (glasses), for me and this chap to drink Mullens' health.'1873, Godfrey Holden Pike, Byeways of two cities, page 226

Verb

out (third-person singular simple present outs, present participle outing, simple past and past participle outed)

1. (transitive) To eject; to expel.
   • a king outed of his country1689, John Selden, Table Talk
   • The French have been outed from their holds.1674, Peter Heylin, Cosmographie in four bookes
2. (intransitive) To come or go out; to get out or away; to become public, revealed, or apparent.
   • Truth will out.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]...
   • 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...1643, John Milton, Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce

   Synonyms:

   come to light, crop out

3. (transitive) To reveal (a person or organization) as having a certain secret, such as a being a secret agent or undercover detective.
   • 2009 March 16, Maurna Desmond, "AIG Outs Counterparties" (online news article), Forbes.com.
   • "Did Dora just offer up that advice, or were you pumping her for information?" "Shoot, I outed my informant. I'm a terrible spy."2017, Jeph Jacques, Questionable Content (webcomic), Number 3509: Sensitive Information
4. (transitive) To reveal (a secret).
   • A Brazilian company outed the new mobile phone design.
   • [Tom] Holland himself admitted to GQ last year that the two hadn't really wanted to go public with their dating status. A video of them making out in a car outed their relationship.2022 December 16, Alyssa Bailey, “Zendaya Took Tom Holland to Visit Her Old School in Oakland”, in Elle
5. (transitive) To reveal (a person) as LGBTQ+ (gay, trans, etc.).
   • She throws her head back and lets out a warm laugh before she continues, “After that I thought, What am I so worried about? So I began to tell more people, and the more I outed myself, the easier it got.”2014 July 18, Jase Peeples, “Susan Blu: Transformation of an Animation Icon”, in The Advocate
   • Trans Media Watch had recently spoken at the Leveson Inquiry about how the Sun and the Daily Mail routinely outed trans people, publishing old names and photos, for no reason other than because they could.2015, Juliet Jacques, Trans: A Memoir, Verso Books, →ISBN
6. To kill; to snuff out.
   • "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."1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC

Adjective

out (not comparable)

1. Not inside or within a place, especially a place that someone or something was formerly inside or is customarily inside
   • I worked away cleaning the U-bend until all the gunge was out.
   • This building is unsafe. Keep out!
2. Not at home, or not at one's office or place of employment.
   • I'm sorry, Mr Smith is out at the moment.
3. Not in jail, prison, or captivity; freed from confinement.
   • Sentenced to five years, he could be out in three with good behavior.
4. Not fitted or inserted into something.
   • The TV won't work with the plug out!
5. 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.
6. Dismissed from play under the rules of the game.
   • He bowls, Johnson pokes at it ... and ... Johnson is out! Caught behind by Ponsonby!
7. (usually, plans) Discarded; no longer a possibility.
   • Right, so that idea's out. Let's move on to the next one.
8. No longer acceptable or permissible.
   • I've got diabetes, so cookies are right out.
9. (devices, or facilities) Not available; out of service.
   • Power is out in the entire city.
   • My wi-fi is out.
10. 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.
11. (fires etc.) Not shining or burning.
    • I called round to the house but all the lights were out and no one was home.
12. (usually) 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.

Interjection

1. (especially, procedure word) 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.
   • [Galactic Federation official]: 'Does Samus suspect anything?' / Ship AI: 'No, I do not think so.' / [Galactic Federation official]: 'Good. Monitor her closely.' / Ship AI: 'Affirmative. Out.'2002 November 18, Nintendo R&D1, Metroid Fusion, Nintendo, Game Boy Advance, scene: dispatch
   1. (especially, humorous, slang, procedure word, following one's own name) Used as a brusque or dramatic farewell
      • Welp, I got nothing else to say. Mikey out.
2. Get out; begone; away!
   • Out, damned spot! Out, I say!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...