outdraw
Americanverb (used with object)
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to draw a gun, revolver, etc., from a holster, faster than (an opponent or competitor).
She could outdraw any member of the club.
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to prove a greater attraction than; exceed in attracting an audience, patrons, attention, etc..
She outdraws all male stars at the box office.
Etymology
Origin of outdraw
Explanation
In a classic Old West showdown, one gunslinger would typically outdraw the other, and he would be the winner. In other words, he would pull his gun from its holster faster and live to tell the story. People sometimes also use the verb outdraw to mean "attract a larger crowd" — like the World Series might outdraw your favorite prime-time game show. The word draw has been used since around 1200 to mean "pull a gun out," and its Old English root dragan means "to drag or carry." And somewhere along the way, draw started to mean "attraction" — like the goody bags at the end of a birthday party are a big draw.
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.
See Examples For:
Put Joshua and Fury almost anywhere - their strongholds of Watford or Morecambe, or Wembley Stadium - and it would still outdraw most fights on the planet.
From BBC ● Apr. 12, 2026
Not even a bunch of bishops covering “Mean Girls” can outdraw Blake Lively.
From Salon ● May 10, 2025
Might they outdraw the A’s, who are soon headed to Las Vegas?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 12, 2024
While the Super Bowl continues to lead championship viewing - this year’s game had a combined audience of 112.3 million - the World Cup final did outdraw other sports.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 20, 2022
But in spite of the differences, he would have laughed if anyone had told him five minutes before that he couldn't outdraw a man who was standing with his back turned.
From Anything You Can Do ... by Garrett, Randall
Now in its fourth season, the show averages over seven million same-day viewers an episode, outdrawing most network dramas.
From New York Times ● Dec. 17, 2021
As Billboard’s headline trumpets, “I Like It” makes her the only female rapper in Hot 100 history with two chart-toppers, outdrawing such prior No. 1 lead performers as Lauryn Hill and Iggy Azalea.
From Slate ● Jul. 5, 2018
In 1979, they played before 10,000 at the Long Beach Arena, outdrawing the UCLA-USC game that was played the same night.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 8, 2018
In 2013, the show was watched by 15.5 million people, according to the Nielsen company, outdrawing the rival Country Music Association Awards show held the previous November for the first time.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 29, 2017
The event, pushed into prime time by rainy weather, was the most watched regular season game in NHL history, drawing nearly 4.6 million viewers and outdrawing the other networks at that time.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 31, 2014
The Chicago Cubs and even the Washington Nationals, with their khaki-and-white-shirt interns and lobbyist fans, have outdrawn the Mets of late.
From New York Times ● Sep. 16, 2019
As an added indignity, the decisive fifth game was outdrawn by a regular-season National Football League contest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2016
Since the start of 2009, it has outdrawn its BlackRock counterpart in deposits by more than seven-to-one.
From BusinessWeek ● Dec. 11, 2012
Though the American film heartthrob is still the favorite actor of millions of movie lovers around the world, in France these days he's being outdrawn by a bunch of fish.
From Time ● Feb. 1, 2010
They went up to their desire, To the City of the Bridges, With their naked brands outdrawn Like the lances of the dawn!
From A Treasury of War Poetry British and American Poems of the World War 1914-1917 by Clarke, George Herbert
In 1964, the year Shea Stadium opened, the Mets outdrew the Yankees, even while losing 109 games.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026
Bad Bunny’s 13-minute halftime show outdrew the game itself, averaging 128.2 million viewers, Nielsen reported.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 10, 2026
The women’s March Madness final outdrew the men’s final match by millions of TV fans.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2024
In the end, the Seattle region outdrew its South Carolina counterpart by a few thousand.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 29, 2023
Since the fourth Creation morning When their God from dust outdrew them, Not one plume has from them perished, And not one bird been added to them.
From A Celtic Psaltery by Graves, Alfred Perceval
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.
