callout

American  

[kawl-out] / ˈkɔlˌaʊt /

Or call-out

noun

1. an act or instance of calling out, or speaking in a loud voice.

2. an order to report for emergency or special work, especially at an unusual time or place.

3. a letter, number, or other device for identifying or calling attention to a particular part of an illustration or text.

4. a challenge to a duel.

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verb phrase

1. to speak in a loud voice; shout.

2. to summon into service or action.

   Call out the militia!

3. to bring out; elicit.

   The emergency called out her hidden abilities.

4. to direct attention to with a callout.

   to call out each feature in a technical drawing.

5. to criticize adversely; express disapproval of; censure.

   Even his fans have called him out on his treatment of women.

6. to challenge to a duel.

Etymology

Origin of callout

First recorded in 1885–90; callout defs. 1, 2, 3, 4 represent noun uses of verb phrase call out

Example Sentences

But hundreds of screeners have quit, and many of those still on the job were working without pay, prompting unusually high callout rates and thinning already-stretched staffing levels.

From Slate • Mar. 26, 2026

New Orleans’s airport callout rate hit 42% that day, the highest among major airports.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

About 10% of TSA employees have called out of work, Duffy said Thursday, which is five times the normal callout rate.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 20, 2026

Jarvis said volunteers often would not meet again until a real life callout "so it is bringing all of these people from very disparate backgrounds together to achieve something really quite amazing".

From BBC • Mar. 9, 2026

And so they say in our navy after this the officer will callout: 'Turn your helm to the left, Jack!'

From The Boy Scouts on Sturgeon Island or Marooned Among the Game-fish Poachers by Carter, Herbert