outtake
Americannoun
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a segment of film or videotape edited out of the final version, as because of a technical error.
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a recording of a song not included in the final release of a record album, as because of a technical error.
noun
Etymology
Origin of outtake
Explanation
An outtake is any scene filmed for a movie that isn't used in the final cut. If an actor forgets his lines, for example, that scene will probably end up as an outtake. Making a film is a long process that involves many steps even after the actual filming of actors reciting dialog and acting out scenes is long over. Editors cut unnecessary bits out of movies, discarding outtakes and shaping a final product. Occasionally these outtakes are interesting or funny enough that directors will include them as extras on a DVD of a movie. Outtake dates from about 1960.
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.
“Production outlooks for early 2026 remain relatively flat, but some incremental output from the Permian is possible with new outtake capacity available and strong demands from the Gulf coast region.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 23, 2025
Enough time appears to have passed between that epic TV showdown and this chair-coving outtake for Stewart to joke about her staple gun fixation by saying, “I'm chopping cabbage.”
From Salon • Jan. 29, 2024
The photo was an outtake from the company's Christmas clothing and home advert, which is based on the premise that people should do away with Christmas traditions they no longer love.
From BBC • Nov. 2, 2023
It’s an outtake from a Christmas commercial filmed in August that was meant to “playfully” illustrate how people don’t enjoy some Christmas traditions, including donning the hats.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 2, 2023
Perhaps adding this outtake to “The Basement Tapes” was an act of obfuscation, yet this thick, thundering garage rocker certainly seems like the beginning of something.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 9, 2023
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.
