out of place

1. Not in the proper situation, not belonging; inappropriate for the circumstances or location. For example, A high school graduate, she felt out of place among all these academics with advanced degrees, or This velvet sofa is out of place on the porch. This idiom uses place in the sense of “a fitting position.” [First half of 1800s]

Example Sentences

The out of place hoops competition was just one component of the evening that really caught me off guard.

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Such an appeal would not be out of place on any day and from any orchestra in recent years.

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And above all this ancient ceremony, a giant, revolving LED screen which wouldn't look out of place at an American basketball game, offering the audience all the stats and replays they could want.

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I recall a friend telling me that she brings her own silverware with her everywhere, a habit that would not have been out of place among the 18th century upper classes.

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Today, dropped into phone calls, Zoom squares and social-media feeds, our brains feel, as Mr. Rein puts it, “out of place, an archaic tool,” like “a horse-drawn carriage on the autobahn.”

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Related Words

• awkward 
• erroneous 
• false 
• ill-advised 
• imprudent 
• inaccurate 
• inadmissible 
• inappropriate 
• incorrect 
• irregular 
• unwarranted 
• wrong