call out
Britishverb
-
to utter aloud, esp loudly
-
(tr) to summon
-
(tr) to order (workers) to strike
-
(tr) to summon (an employee) to work at a time outside his normal working hours, usually in an emergency
-
(tr) to challenge to a duel
-
Summon into action or service, as in The governor called out the militia . [Mid-1400s]
-
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.
De Los editors Fidel Martinez and Suzy Exposito call out overdone Latin music trends and the best albums of 2026 on ‘The De Los Podcast.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
"We all have a duty to call out bad behaviour whenever we see it."
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
It’s rare for any TV news outfit to call out its own regulators in such an unabashed manner.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
Sometimes, before the daily tallies that occurred to ensure all inmates were accounted for, they would jokingly call out, “It’s count time, guys—go ahead and hide your cellphones.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Can I live with going to bed and wondering what I’ll dream, what I’ll call out, what I’ll scream?
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
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.
