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• out-of-sight
  out-of-sight

  adjective

  fantastic; great; marvelous.
• out of sight
  out of sight

  Also, out of someone's sight . Out of the range of vision, as in Stay out of sight while they're visiting , or Don't let the baby out of your sight in the yard . [c. 1200] This idiom is also used in the phrase get out of someone's sight , meaning “go away”; for example, Jean was furious with Bill and told him to get out of her sight at once .

out-of-sight

American  

[aut-uhv-sahyt] / ˈaʊt əvˈsaɪt /

adjective

1. Slang. fantastic; great; marvelous.

   an out-of-sight guitarist.

2. beyond reason; exceedingly high.

   out-of-sight hospital bills.

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out of sight Idioms  

1. Also, out of someone's sight . Out of the range of vision, as in Stay out of sight while they're visiting , or Don't let the baby out of your sight in the yard . [c. 1200] This idiom is also used in the phrase get out of someone's sight , meaning “go away”; for example, Jean was furious with Bill and told him to get out of her sight at once .

2. Unreasonable, excessive, as in Our bill for the wine was out of sight . [ Colloquial ; late 1800s]

3. Excellent, superb, as in The graduation party was out of sight . This phrase is also used as an interjection meaning “Wonderful!” as in Do I like it? Out of sight! [ Slang ; second half of 1900s]

4. out of sight , out of mind . What is absent is soon forgotten, as in I don't think of them unless they send a Christmas card—out of sight, out of mind, I guess . This phrase has been proverbial since Homer's time; the earliest recorded use in English was about 1450.

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Etymology

Origin of out-of-sight

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

out-of-sight out of sight

In Essex, another school has just invested in magnetically locked pouches, to replace its previous out-of-sight policy.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

He said California is on the cusp of more dedicated efforts to replenish water reserves that have long been largely out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2024

I soon learned from another staff member that when a person’s travel location is input into the system, it’s enclosed by an out-of-sight geofence.

From Slate ● Dec. 13, 2023

Like challenges adjudicated in a far-off room by out-of-sight officials.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 4, 2022

They heard uproar from the distant boundary of the school as what sounded like hundreds of people came swarming over the out-of-sight walls and pelted toward the castle, uttering loud war cries.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

It really is out of sight, out of mind.

From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026

Underground and out of sight, giant subterranean peat fires continue to smoulder, choking the air with poisonous fumes.

From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026

People with leprosy—a visible sign, in Mr. Basciano’s telling, of physical illness and, for many cultures, social disorder—needed to be kept safely out of sight to ensure a more flattering national identity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

We think of Los Angeles as a relatively young city, but out of sight and under our feet there lies a massive community of unsung senior citizens whose work is essential to our survival.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026

Miss Mortimer tucked her yellowed copy of the bylaws out of sight.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood