From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishoutout1 /aʊt/ ●●● S1 W1 adverb 1 from insideIN/INSIDE from inside an object, container, building, or place OPP in She opened her suitcase and took out a pair of shoes. Lock the door on your way out. Charlotte went to the window and looked out. Out you go (=used to order someone to leave a room)!out of The keys must have fallen out of my pocket. Get out of here! Someone had torn several pages out of her diary. I don’t think I’d have the courage to jump out of a plane. All the roads out of the city were snowbound.out came/jumped etc The egg cracked open and out came a baby chick.2 outsideOUT/OUTSIDE not inside a building SYN outside Many of the homeless have been sleeping out for years. Children were out playing in the snow. Brrr, it’s cold out there.► see thesaurus at outside3 not at homeHERE a) away from your home, office etc, especially for a short time OPP in Did anyone call while I was out? My parents are both out at the moment. He went out at 11 o'clock. b) DLOHOMEto or in a place that is not your home, in order to enjoy yourself You should get out and meet people. Let’s eat out tonight (=eat in a restaurant). At first he was too shy to ask her out.be/get out and about (=go to places where you can meet people) Most teenagers would rather be out and about with their friends.4 FARdistant place a) in or to a place that is far away or difficult to get to He went out to New Zealand. They’ve rented a farmhouse right out in the country. b) used to say how far away something is The Astra Satellite is travelling some 23,000 miles out in space.out of a little village about five miles out of Birmingham5 XXgiven to many people used to say that something is given to many people The examination will start when all the question papers have been handed out. Have you sent out the invitations yet? 6 get rid of somethingGET RID OF used to say that someone gets rid of something or makes it disappear Have you thrown out yesterday’s paper? Mother used washing soda to get the stains out.7 STOP something THAT IS HAPPENINGnot burning/shining a fire or light that is out is no longer burning or shining Turn the lights out when you go to bed. The firefighters arrived, and within minutes the fire was out.8 sun/moon etc if the sun, moon, or stars are out, they have appeared in the sky When the sun came out, a rainbow formed in the sky.9 flowers if the flowers on a plant are out, they have opened It’s still February and already the primroses are out.10 COMPLETELYcompletely/carefully used to say that something is done carefully or completely I spent all morning cleaning out the kitchen cupboards. In the summer months the soil dries out quickly. 11 INCLUDEnot included not included in a team, group, competition etc The Welsh team was surprisingly knocked out in the semi-finals.out of Daniels will be out of the team until he recovers from his injury.12 COME FROM/ORIGINATEcome from something used to say where something comes from or is taken fromout of A lot of good music came out of the hippy culture in the 1960s. The money is automatically taken out of your bank account every month.13 STICK OUTaway from the edge of something away from the main part or edge of something I swam out into the middle of the lake. A long peninsula juts out into the sea.out of She stuck her head out of the window to see what was happening.14 not working especially American EnglishBROKEN if a machine, piece of equipment etc is out, it is not working I don’t believe it – the elevator’s out again! → be out of order at order1(8)15 productBBTAVAILABLE used to say that a product is available to be bought Is the new Harry Potter book out yet? Sony have brought out a new portable music system.16 XXnot in a situation no longer in a particular state or situationout of She’s not completely cured, but at least she’s out of danger. This whole situation is getting out of control. How long have you been out of work now? Karen waved until the car was out of sight (=too far away to be seen). 17 FREE/NOT IN PRISONhaving left an institution a) having left the institution where you wereout of a kid just out of college His wife isn’t out of hospital yet. b) no longer in prison Once he was out, he returned to a life of crime.18 not fashionableDCFASHIONABLE no longer fashionable OPP in You can’t wear that – maxi skirts have been out for years.19 not secretSECRET no longer a secret Her secret was out. The word’s out that Mel Gibson is in town. Eventually the truth came out.20 → read/shout etc something out (loud)21 unconsciousUNCONSCIOUS not conscious She fainted – she was out for about ten minutes. How hard did you hit him? He’s out cold.22 NOT HAVEnone left used to say that there is none of something left because you have used it all, sold it all etc The album was sold out within minutes.out of We’re out of milk. They’ve run out of ideas. 23 → before the day/year etc is out24 not correctWRONG/INCORRECT if a measurement, result etc is out, it is wrong because the numbers have not been calculated correctly He was out in his calculations, so there was a lot of carpet left over. The bill was out by over £10. Their forecast was way out. → not far off/out/wrong at far1(2)25 → be out for something/be out to do something26 PGnot in power used to say that someone, especially a political party, no longer has power or authority OPP in It’s time we voted the Republicans out.out of The party has been out of office for a long time.27 on strike British EnglishBEL used to say that someone has stopped working as a way of protesting about something The railway workers have come out in sympathy with the miners.28 homosexualSYHOMOSEXUAL if a homosexual is out, they have told people that they are homosexual29 IMPOSSIBLEnot possible spoken if a particular suggestion or activity is out, it is not possible We don’t have enough money to rent a car, so that’s out.30 seaDN when the tide is out, the sea by the shore is at its lowest level OPP in You can walk across the sands when the tide is out. 31 sport a) DSa player or team that is out in a game such as cricket or baseball is no longer allowed to bat Sussex were all out for 365. b) DSa ball that is out in a game such as tennis or basketball is not in the area of play OPP in32 → out with it!33 BECAUSEreason because of a particular feeling that you haveout of They obeyed him out of fear rather than respect. Just out of curiosity, why did you take that job?34 CONSIST OF/BE MADE OFmade of something used to say what substance or materials a particular thing is made ofout of a tombstone carved out of black marble toy boats made out of old tin cans35 XXhow many of a group used to say how common something is, or how large a part of a group you are talking aboutnine out of ten/three out of four etc Nine out of ten students pass the test first time. Apparently they’ve lost three games out of seven already.36 → out of it37 → out there38 → out front → out of your mind at mind1(24), → out of the blue at blue2(4), → out of luck at luck1(10), → out of this world at world1(15), → be out of the question at question1(9), → out front at front1(8), → out back at back2(2), → out of sorts at sort1(10)
Examples from the Corpus
out• Janice opened the door and looked out.• When I dropped my bag, some of my money must have fallen out.• Two firemen carried his body out and laid it on the ground.• You go on in. I'll wait out here.• Leave your coat out in the hallway.• Parents stood out in the rain waiting to collect their children from school.• I heard meowing, opened the trunk of the car, and out jumped a thin black cat.• What's that dog doing out there in our yard?• We camped and slept out under the stars every night.out came/jumped etc• She opened her mouth, and out came a constellation of gorgeous sounds.• For the first goal, Newell out jumped him to head towards goal.• Then out came Red Swan California potatoes, Sunkist oranges and lemons.• The customer dialled the publication he wanted, put in his money, and out came the book.• Then out came the gun, a.32 semi-automatic that killed Kayla.• And suddenly, with the water, out came the long slimy newt straight into the glass, plop!• So, out came the plans, very sketchy, but a start.• Varney laughed; his mouth opened and out came the staccato machine-gun pants.be/get out and about• All for getting out and about.• Both girls were keen cyclists and since they lived near the road they could get out and about.• Then the local centre for the handicapped lent them a wheelchair, so they were able to get out and about.• You are popular with canines and humans alike, so get out and about.• Bikers get more out of life, so climb down off your exercycle and get out and about for some fresh air.• Despite all the drawbacks, I still enjoy getting out and about in the countryside whenever I can.• He got out and about more and began to enjoy life again.• Try to get out and about whenever possible, making new friends and contacts. right out• I could dig a tunnel right out.• Thee has worked so hard, why must thee run right out and find more work?• Something go wrong I call the man who built it and he come right out and take care of it.• Everything was coming true, then right out of high school I contracted polio and was completely paralyzed within a week.• Go ahead and eat right out of the garbage.• There was nothing like a small fire to take the boredom right out of things.out of sight• First, the cost of these activities began to escalate out of sight.• I do not think it took us longer than that to get out of range and out of sight.• I was trying to burrow out of sight.• My old friend: in no time at all she was round the corner and out of sight.• Keep your car windows rolled up and valuables out of sight.• The yacht sailed away into the distance and out of sight.• We watched his car as it rounded the bend and sped off out of sight.• Their wombs are out of sight and out of mind.• Jim waited until his parents' car was out of sight and then left the house.• We both quickly dropped out of sight behind the desk.• Daley sat in the house, out of sight, but giving orders to the corner police station by phone.• Just as she went out of sight, he remembered he hadn't given her his number.• It's best to keep your purse out of sight in this office.• He would punch and kick me as soon as we were out of sight of the teachers.• The car passed out of sight over the hill.• The drip pan underneath the refrigerator is out of sight, so special effort must be made to clean it.• But out of sight the roots from which they grow are spreading rapidly.out cold• At first I thought he must be out cold.• He stood outside the door and cried and then went and drank until he was out cold.• The impact was so sudden and so fierce, it knocked me out cold.• The tarmac of the road Is velvet with sleep, the hills are out cold.• I crawled out cold, cramped, and feeling sick - to a world that seemed to have disappeared altogether.• The gunman lay on the floor, out cold in a puddle of wine. way out• I fixed an interview time with Sylvia on my way out. 7 Emily Lightbody came back to work the following Monday.• Revue was on its way out.• We are faced with a very difficult situation, but there must be a way out.• One man found twenty dollars on the sidewalk on his way out.• We don't need to take Wittgenstein's way out here; or at least, we don't need to yet.• I live way out in Laurel Canyon.• One of the pods was inching its way out into space.• Tricia backed her way out, never taking her eyes off me or letting her bearings slip.• If your expenses are even one percent higher than your revenues, you are on your way out of business.• If he is in the middle of an engram, the only way out of it is through it.• I don't see any way out of the present deadlock.• We drove way out past Reno to the old Fielding place.outout2 ●●● S1 W2 preposition especially American English informal from the inside to the outside of something – many teachers of British English consider it incorrect to use ‘out’ as a preposition Karen looked out the window at the back yard. Get out the car and push with the rest of us!Examples from the Corpus
out• If you look out of the bedroom window, you can see the ocean.• She ran out the door and down the street.• Hey, look out the window! See the hot-air balloon?outout3 verb 1 [transitive]SYHOMOSEXUAL to publicly say that someone is homosexual when that person would prefer to keep it secret Several politicians have been outed in recent months.Grammar Out is usually passive in this meaning.2 [transitive] to let the public know a fact about someone that they would prefer to keep secretout somebody as something He was outed as a supporter of the far-right party.3 → murder/the truth etc will out!→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
out• The Air Force pilot was afraid of being outed by his ex-lover.• John knew that he might be outed if he decided to run for office.• The Advocate, a national gay magazine, outed the congressman.outout4 noun 1 [singular]REASON an excuse to avoid doing an activity or to avoid being blamed for something I’m busy on Sunday, so that gives me an out.2 DS[countable] an act of making a player in baseball lose the chance to score a point3 → on the outs (with somebody) → ins and outsExamples from the Corpus
out• Now you know all the ins and outs of cricket.• But the user must be patient when learning the ins and outs of an expansion card.• Actually, he managed six outs, though the assignment was closer to 12.• Mussina recovered to get the next two outs, stranding runners in scoring position.• With two outs and runners at first and third, A&M tried a delayed double steal.out-out- /aʊt/ prefix 1 XXused to form nouns and adjectives from verbs that are followed by ‘out’ an outbreak of flu (=from ‘break out’) outspoken comments (=from ‘speak out’)2 OUT/OUTSIDE[in nouns and adjectives] outside or beyond something an outbuilding (=small building away from the main building) outlying areas (=far from the centre)3 MORE THAN A NUMBER OR AMOUNT[in verbs] being or becoming bigger, further, greater etc than someone or something else He’s outgrown his clothes (=become too big for them). She outlived her brother (=he died before her).4 [in verbs] doing better than someone, so that you defeat them I can out-argue you any day. She outran him.Examples from the Corpus
out-• an outhouseFrom Longman Business Dictionaryoutout /aʊt/ adjective [not before a noun]1available to be boughtHis new book is due out next spring.The company plans to bring out a similar product of its own.2British English if the workers in a company, factory etc are out, they are refusing to workSYNON STRIKETeachers in some places stayed out on strike for weeks against the orders of their unions.3American English if a worker is out or out sick, they are not at work because they are sickSYNoff sick BrERalph’s been out sick four times this month already.4American English if a machine is out, it is not workingSYNout of order BrE5if your accounts, calculations etc are out, they are wrongThe bill was out by over £10.Origin out1 Old English ut 