rout

¹ American  

[rout] / raʊt /

noun

1. a defeat attended with disorderly flight; dispersal of a defeated force in complete disorder.

   to put an army to rout; to put reason to rout.

2. any overwhelming defeat.

   a rout of the home team by the state champions.

3. a tumultuous or disorderly crowd of persons.

   Synonyms:

   horde, swarm

4. the rabble or mob.

5. Law. a disturbance of the public peace by three or more persons acting together in a manner that suggests an intention to riot although they do not actually carry out the intention.

6. a large, formal evening party or social gathering.

7. Archaic. a company or band of people.

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verb (used with object)

1. to disperse in defeat and disorderly flight.

   to rout an army.

2. to defeat decisively.

   to rout an opponent in conversation.

   Synonyms:

   subdue, overcome, overwhelm

rout ² American  

[rout] / raʊt /

verb (used without object)

1. to root.

   pigs routing in the garden.

2. to poke, search, or rummage.

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verb (used with object)

1. to turn over or dig up (something) with the snout.

2. to find or get by searching, rummaging, etc. (usually followed byout ).

3. to cause to rise from bed (often followed by up orout ).

4. to force or drive out.

5. to hollow out or furrow, as with a scoop, gouge, or machine.

rout ³ American  

[rout] / raʊt /

verb (used without object)

Archaic.

1. to snore.

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rout ⁴ American  

[rout, root] / raʊt, rut /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to bellow; roar.

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noun

1. a bellow.

rout ¹ British  

/ raʊt /

noun

1. an overwhelming defeat

2. a disorderly retreat

3. a noisy rabble

4. law a group of three or more people proceeding to commit an illegal act

5. archaic a large party or social gathering

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verb

1. (tr) to defeat and cause to flee in confusion

rout ² British  

/ raʊt /

verb

1. to dig over or turn up (something), esp (of an animal) with the snout; root

2. (tr; usually foll by out or up) to get or find by searching

3. to force or drive out

   they routed him out of bed at midnight

4. to hollow or gouge out

5. (intr) to search, poke, or rummage

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Etymology

Origin of rout¹

First recorded in 1200–50; (noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French rute, Old French route “a fraction, detachment,” from Latin rupta, feminine past participle of rumpere “to break”; (verb) derivative of the noun

Origin of rout²

First recorded in 1540–50; alteration of root ²; compare Middle Dutch ruten “to root out”

Origin of rout³

First recorded before 900; Middle English routen, Old English hrūtan; cognate with Old High German hrūzan

Origin of rout⁴

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English rowten, from Old Norse rauta “to bellow”; akin to Latin rudere

Example Sentences

The rout comes as brokerages have been requiring more margin to facilitate trading in precious metals.

From MarketWatch

In January 1966, he joined a battalion of U.S. soldiers seeking to rout North Vietnamese snipers and was standing next to the battalion commander when an officer paused to read a map.

From Los Angeles Times

If this were any other American household, it would be reasonable to assume Williams is ecstatic over a bet, fantasy-football win or simply the Eagles’ rout of the lowly Las Vegas Raiders.

From The Wall Street Journal

The rout picked up steam in December, dragging on other digital tokens as investors turned more pessimistic about the economy and re-evaluated riskier holdings across markets.

From The Wall Street Journal

The Rams are coming off a 45-17 rout of the Arizona Cardinals, a game in which they rolled up 530 yards.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• beat
• chase
• clobber
• conquer
• crush
• destroy
• expel
• finish
• kill
• overpower
• repulse
• subdue
• trounce
• vanquish
• whip
• wipe out