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Synonyms

drop out

Idioms  

  1. Withdraw from participation in a group such as a school, club, or game; also, withdraw from society owing to disillusionment. For example, He couldn't afford the membership dues and had to drop out, or She planned to drop out from college for a year. [Late 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.

But with a huge field spreading votes so thinly, there are growing calls for the no-hopers to drop out and allow one or two candidates to float to the top.

From Barron's • May 5, 2026

Yet when adults drop out of the workforce to have babies, or future workers, we penalize them by refusing to credit those years toward their own Social Security payments.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 30, 2026

Former Williams Academy driver Zak O'Sullivan was forced to drop out of the 2024 Formula 2 season partway through because of funding issues.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

By the end of the meeting, Maguire dared Grinberg to drop out of Berkeley to start a company.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

“Everybody lies about who they are. Name one person here who isn’t doing that and I will drop out right now!”

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

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.