out of order
Idioms-
Not functioning well, not operating properly or at all, as in The oil burner is out of order again . [Mid-1500s]
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Unsuitable, inappropriate, as in Her comments about the management were out of order . Also see out of line , def. 1.
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Not following parliamentary procedure, as in The chair called him out of order .
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.
On Monday Mr. Khanna’s amendment was ruled out of order.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
Other simultaneous downloads swept up episodes of “The Big Bang Theory” and “Ted Lasso” out of order, though a putative human user would probably have downloaded them sequentially.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
After a missed match dart by Van Veen, the pair exchanged a frosty handshake and the Dutchman said Littler "was out of order" at what he perceived to be a celebration at the miss.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
"The fountain was out of order and the lawns were bad -- it was necessary," says 40-something neighborhood resident Dina Smith.
From Barron's ● May 19, 2026
My telling list was scrambled out of order.
From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston
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.
