inside out
Idioms-
With the inner surface turned out or revealed, as in He wore his shirt inside out . This expression dates from about 1600 and was soon used figuratively, as in He turned the verses inside out and revealed their hidden sense .
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Extremely well, thoroughly, especially alluding to knowing something. For example, He knows this system inside out . [First half of 1900s]
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 that refusal to risk vulnerability comes back to bite her when the daughter she turned herself inside out to spoil pulls a move reminiscent of Veda in “Mildred Pierce,” betraying Emma for vapid reasons.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
When they faced one another it was absorbing - two players who knew each other's games inside out, from years spent on the practice courts in Compton, California.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Many of the fossils display unusual combinations of features, such as tentacles, stalks, attachment discs, and feeding structures that could be turned inside out.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 6, 2026
I’m just really humbled and thankful to be a part of a team and staff that cares about things from the inside out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2026
It felt like I was boiling from the inside out.
From "The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken
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.
