Out — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adverb verb preposition adjective noun /ˈau̇t/

Meaning & Definition of Out

Out (adverb)

  1. in a direction away from the inside or center
  2. outside
  3. from among others

Out (verb)

  1. to identify (someone) publicly as being such secretly; especially, to reveal the covert sexual orientation or gender identity of (someone)
  2. to become publicly known
  3. to put out, to eject (someone) from a place, office, or possession, expel

Out (preposition)

  1. —used as a function word to indicate an outward movement

Out (adjective)

  1. situated outside, external
  2. out-of-bounds
  3. situated at a distance, outlying

Out (noun)

  1. outside
  2. one who is out of office or power or on the outside
  3. an act or instance of putting a player out or of being put out in baseball

Out (adverb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. in or into the open air

    "you really should get out more"

    similar: alfresco, outdoors, outside
    related: without
    opposite: indoors
    near: in, inside, within

  2. with one's normal voice speaking the words

    "the search parties were sent in different directions and told to cry out if they discovered anything"

    similar: aloud, audibly, out loud
    related: verbally, vocally, clearly, discernibly, distinctly, distinguishably, perceptibly, plainly, blatantly, bloody murder, boisterously, clamorously, loudly, lustily, mightily, noisily, resonantly, resoundingly, stridently, thunderously, uproariously, vociferously
    opposite: inaudibly, silently, soundlessly, voicelessly
    near: faintly, feebly, low, noiselessly, quietly, softly

  3. to a full extent or degree

    "when stretched out, the ribbon was just long enough"

    similar: all, all of, all over, altogether, clean, completely, dead, enough, entire, entirely, even, exactly, fast, flat, full, fully, heartily, perfectly, plumb (chiefly dialect), quite, soundly, thoroughly, through and through, totally, utterly, well, wholly, wide, all the way, at length, down the line, down to the ground, for fair, in whole, to bits, to pieces, to the hilt, to the max
    related: absolutely, categorically, cold, downright, hands down, plain, stone, stone-cold, unqualifiedly, basically, by and large, chiefly, generally, largely, mainly, more or less, mostly, overall, predominantly, predominately, primarily, principally, substantially, abundantly, copiously, generously, greatly
    opposite: half, halfway, incompletely, part, partially, partly
    near: barely, hardly, just, kind of, marginally, minimally, scarcely, slightly, superficially, approximately, roughly, somewhat

  4. from this or that place

    "people staggered out from the burning building gasping for breath"

    similar: away, down, fro, hence, off
    related: apart, aside, elsewhere, abroad, afar, afield, astray

Out (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. the act or a means of getting or keeping away from something undesirable

    "I really don't want to go to the party, and I've been searching for an out"

    similar: avoidance, cop-out, dodging, ducking, eluding, elusion, escape, eschewal, eschewing, evasion, shaking, shunning
    related: bypassing, circumvention, runaround, sidestepping, skirting, averting, deflection, obviation, precluding, prevention
    near: abidance, endurance, submission, toleration

Out (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. fully committed to achieving a goal

    "he's out to get even with the guy who beat him last time around"

    similar: bent (on or upon), bound, decisive, determined, do-or-die, firm, hell-bent (on or upon), intent, purposeful, resolute, resolved, set, single-minded, on one's mettle
    related: bitter, vehement, certain, cocksure, confident, positive, sure, earnest, serious, steady, unfaltering, unhesitating, unswerving, unwavering, adamant, adamantine, dogged, hard, hardened, hardheaded, headstrong, immovable, implacable, inflexible, mulish, obdurate, persistent, pertinacious, perverse, pigheaded, rigid, self-willed, stubborn, tenacious, unbending, uncompromising, unrelenting, unyielding, willful
    opposite: faltering, hesitant, indecisive, irresolute, undetermined, unresolved, vacillating, wavering, weak-kneed
    near: distrustful, doubtful, dubious, mistrustful, skeptical, suspicious, uncertain, unconvinced, undecided, unsettled, unsure, disinclined, indisposed, loath, reluctant

  2. not at a certain place

    "half the staff is out with the flu"

    similar: absent, away, missing
    related: AWOL, truant, departed, gone, retired, abroad, vacationing
    opposite: here, in, present
    near: accompanying, attending, participating

Out (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to become known

    "the truth will out eventually"

    similar: break, circulate, come out, get about, get around, get out, get round, leak (out), spread
    related: develop, transpire, unfold, disclose, reveal, spill, tell
    near: hush (up), suppress, conceal, disguise, hide, mask, secrete

  2. to drive or force out

    "before moving in, we outed all the furry little creatures who had settled in the cabin over the winter"

    similar: banish, boot (out), bounce, cast out, chase, dismiss, drum (out), eject, expel, extrude, kick out, oust, rout, run off, throw out, turf (out) (chiefly British), turn out, give one the gate (slang), send packing
    related: deforce, deport, displace, dispossess, evict, exile, expatriate, ostracize, read out, shut out, ax, can, cashier, defenestrate, discharge, fire, muster out, pink-slip, release, remove, retire, sack, terminate
    near: accept, admit, receive, take, take in, welcome, entertain, harbor, house, lodge, shelter

Related Entry: Out-and-out (adjective)

Out-and-out is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out-and-out, not for out.

  1. having no exceptions or restrictions

    "an out-and-out cheater at every game she plays"

    "her story is not just an exaggeration, it's an out-and-out lie"

    similar: absolute, all-out, arrant, blank, blooming (chiefly British), bodacious (Southern & Midland), categorical, clean, complete, consummate, crashing, damn, damned, dead, deadly, definite, downright, dreadful, fair, flat, flat-out, outright, perfect, plumb, profound, pure, rank, regular, sheer, simple, stark, stone, straight-out, thorough, thoroughgoing, total, unadulterated, unalloyed, unconditional, unmitigated, unqualified, utter, very
    related: authentic, classic, genuine, real, veritable, constant, endless, eternal, perpetual, undying, unremitting, extreme, unrestricted, confirmed, habitual, hopeless, inveterate, extraordinary, frightful, horrible, huge, main, superlative, supreme, surpassing, terrible, terrific
    near: doubtful, dubious, equivocal, qualified, questionable, restricted, uncertain

  2. trying all possibilities

    "mounted an out-and-out effort to find the lost child"

    similar: all-out, clean, complete, comprehensive, exhaustive, full-scale, thorough, thoroughgoing, total
    related: broad, extensive, far-reaching, in-depth, sweeping, wide, wide-ranging, general, global, inclusive, methodical, systematic, no-holds-barred, unhampered, unrestrained
    near: aimless, desultory, haphazard, hit-or-miss, random, cursory, shallow, slipshod, superficial, limited, narrow, restricted

Related Entry: Out-front (adjective)

Out-front is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out-front, not for out.

  1. free in expressing one's true feelings and opinions

    "he's always been out-front about his sexuality"

    similar: candid, direct, forthcoming, forthright, foursquare, frank, free-spoken, freehearted, honest, open, openhearted, outspoken, plain, plainspoken, straight, straightforward, unguarded, unreserved, up-front
    related: artless, earnest, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, naive, natural, real, sincere, unaffected, undesigning, unpretending, unpretentious, outgoing, uninhibited, unrestrained, vocal, vociferous, abrupt, bluff, blunt, brusque, crusty, curt, gruff, sharp, impertinent, impolite, inconsiderate, rude, tactless, thoughtless, uncivil, undiplomatic, ungracious, unmannerly, unsubtle
    opposite: dissembling, uncandid, unforthcoming
    near: inhibited, reserved, restrained, close-mouthed, laconic, quiet, reticent, taciturn, tight-lipped, uncommunicative, ambiguous, circuitous, equivocal, evasive, diplomatic, politic, tactful, civil, considerate, courteous, polite

Related Entry: Out loud (adverb)

Out loud is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out loud, not for out.

  1. with one's normal voice speaking the words

    "registered their dissatisfaction with the meal out loud to the waiter"

    similar: aloud, audibly, out
    related: verbally, vocally, clearly, discernibly, distinctly, distinguishably, perceptibly, plainly, blatantly, bloody murder, boisterously, clamorously, loudly, lustily, mightily, noisily, resonantly, resoundingly, stridently, thunderously, uproariously, vociferously
    opposite: inaudibly, silently, soundlessly, voicelessly
    near: faintly, feebly, low, noiselessly, quietly, softly

Related Entry: Out-migrant (noun)

Out-migrant is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out-migrant, not for out.

  1. one that leaves one place to settle in another

    "most out-migrants cited the state's high cost of living as their main reason for leaving"

    similar: emigrant, émigré, immigrant, in-migrant, incomer (chiefly British), migrant, settler
    related: defector, deportee, evacuee, exile, expatriate, refugee, relocatee, repatriate, alien, foreigner, noncitizen, nonnative, colonist, newcomer, squatter, migrator, pilgrim, pioneer, trekker
    opposite: nonimmigrant
    near: aborigine, native, citizen, habitant, inhabitant, national, resident

Related Entry: Out-of-date (adjective)

Out-of-date is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out-of-date, not for out.

  1. having passed its time of use or usefulness

    "his file contained out-of-date information that might have been accurate when he was first hired but is no longer so"

    similar: antiquated, archaic, dated, démodé, demoded, fossilized, kaput, medieval, moribund, mossy, moth-eaten, neolithic, Noachian, obsolete, outdated, outmoded, outworn, passé, prehistoric, rusty, Stone Age, superannuated
    related: aging, obsolescent, discarded, disused, inoperable, unusable, unworkable, useless, dead, defunct, expired, extinct, vanished, dormant, fallow, free, idle, inactive, inert, inoperative, latent, ancient, antediluvian, antique, dateless, fusty, musty, old, oldfangled, old-fashioned, old-time, retro, vintage, aged, age-old, hoary, venerable, atavistic, bygone, erstwhile, former, historic, historical, late, old-world, past
    near: contemporary, current, mod, modern, new, newfangled, new-fashioned, present-day, recent, ultramodern, up-to-date, up-to-the-minute, fresh, modernized, refurbished, remodeled, renewed, functional, operable, operational, workable, active, alive, busy, employed, functioning, operating, operative

Related Entry: Out-of-door (adjective)

Out-of-door is a different word from Out. The synonyms below are for out-of-door, not for out.

  1. of, relating to, or held in the open air

    "an out-of-door performance under the stars"

    similar: alfresco, open-air, outdoor, outdoorsy
    related: airy, exterior, external, outer, outside, outward, outermost, outmost
    opposite: indoor
    near: inner, inside, interior, internal, inward, inmost, innermost

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Out

The most common words with a similar meaning to Out:

Chiefly dialect: plumb
Chiefly British: turf (out)
Slang: give one the gate
alfresco, outdoors, outside, aloud, audibly, out loud, all, all of, all over, altogether, clean, completely, dead, enough, entire, entirely, even, exactly, fast, flat, full, fully, heartily, perfectly, quite, soundly, thoroughly, through and through, totally, utterly, well, wholly, wide, away, down, fro, hence, off, all the way, at length

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Out

Words with the opposite meaning of Out:

indoors, inaudibly, silently, soundlessly, voicelessly, half, halfway, incompletely, part, partially, partly, faltering, hesitant, indecisive, irresolute, undetermined, unresolved, vacillating, wavering, weak-kneed, here, in, present

Related Words for Out

without, verbally, vocally, clearly, discernibly, distinctly, distinguishably, perceptibly, plainly, blatantly, bloody murder, boisterously, clamorously, loudly, lustily, mightily, noisily, resonantly, resoundingly, stridently, thunderously, uproariously, vociferously, absolutely, categorically, cold, downright, hands down, plain, stone

Near Antonyms of Out

inside, within, faintly, feebly, low, noiselessly, quietly, softly, barely, hardly, just, kind of, marginally, minimally, scarcely, slightly, superficially, approximately, roughly, somewhat, abidance, endurance, submission, toleration, distrustful, doubtful, dubious, mistrustful, skeptical, suspicious

Word Forms of Out

Inflections: outed, outing, outs

Origin & Etymology of Out

Middle English, from Old English ūt; akin to Old High German ūz out, Greek hysteros later, Sanskrit ud up, out

First known use: before 12th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Out

Words & Phrases Containing Out

out-, out-and-out, out-and-outer, out at elbows, out front

Frequently Asked Questions about Out

What does "Out" mean?

"Out" means in a direction away from the inside or center. As an an adverb, a verb, a preposition, an adjective and a noun, it is defined as: in a direction away from the inside or center. It has 9 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Out"?

Other words for "Out" include alfresco, outdoors, outside, aloud, audibly, out loud, all and all of. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Out" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Out"?

There are 247 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Out". Common alternatives include alfresco, outdoors, outside, aloud, audibly, out loud, all, all of, all over and altogether.

What is the opposite of "Out"?

Antonyms of "Out" include indoors, inaudibly, silently, soundlessly, voicelessly, half, halfway and incompletely. Near antonyms include inside, within, faintly and feebly.

How do you use "Out" in a sentence?

Examples of "Out" in a sentence: "you really should get out more"; "the search parties were sent in different directions and told to cry out if they discovered anything"; "when stretched out, the ribbon was just long enough".

Is "Out" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Out" can be used as an adverb, a verb, a preposition, an adjective and a noun, depending on the context.

Is "Out" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A1-level word, "Out" is typical of Cambridge A1 Movers (Young Learners), TOEIC Listening & Reading 120+.

How do you pronounce "Out"?

"Out" is pronounced /ˈau̇t/.