call out
Britishverb
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to utter aloud, esp loudly
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(tr) to summon
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(tr) to order (workers) to strike
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(tr) to summon (an employee) to work at a time outside his normal working hours, usually in an emergency
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(tr) to challenge to a duel
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Summon into action or service, as in The governor called out the militia . [Mid-1400s]
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Challenge to a fight, as in To avenge the insult, Arthur called him out . This term originated with dueling and is dying out. [Early 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“It gets to the point where I sometimes call out the RMD being a bigger bomb when it hits,” he says.
From Barron's • Jun. 13, 2026
Like it or not, Colbert was doing what comedians are supposed to do: hold a mirror up to society, politics, human nature or whatever their focus may be, and call out the absurdities within.
From Los Angeles Times • May 20, 2026
Brash does not consider himself an influencer, because he is guided by professional medical standards, rather than clicks, to call out "misinformation".
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
“We talked about our parties in self-deprecating ways. I thought, If we call out the bullshit of everybody on everybody’s side and have a real conversation, this could be interesting,” she said.
From Slate • Apr. 21, 2026
But the moon was bright and the shadow of those wings so real, and before we could find our voices, before I could call out, “Wait!” the owl had flown off into the night.
From "Missing May" by Cynthia Rylant
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
