pass out
Britishverb
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informal (intr) to become unconscious; faint
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(intr) (esp of an officer cadet) to qualify for a military commission; complete a course of training satisfactorily
General Smith passed out from Sandhurst in 1933
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(tr) to distribute
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Distribute, as in He passed out the papers . [Early 1900s]
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Also, pass out cold . Faint, as in When she heard the news she passed out cold . [Early 1900s] Also see out cold .
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.
Occasionally, workers who weren’t wearing protective equipment would pass out from the fumes, they said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 9, 2026
Amy Peckham-Driver was 14 when excruciating period pains caused her to pass out in a toilet at school.
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2026
While waiting on a bench at the police station, officers said Diarra was seen to pass out and paramedics were called who tried to revive him, but he was pronounced dead.
From Barron's • Jan. 25, 2026
The young man then appeared to pass out as bystanders screamed.
From Salon • Jan. 14, 2026
He wanted to lie there and pass out, but he had to keep moving.
From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan
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.
