Record one's time of departure from work, as in We never punch out at exactly five o'clock . This usage, dating from the 1920s, alludes to the use of a time clock. Also see punch in , def. 1.
a small section of cardboard or metal surrounded by perforations so that it can be easily forced out.
Slang. a fistfight or brawl.
Baseball. the air-punching gesture an umpire makes to denote a third strike, effectively ending the batter’s at-bat.
Stein didn’t develop his signature punch-out until his third season umpiring in the minors.
Record one's time of departure from work, as in We never punch out at exactly five o'clock . This usage, dating from the 1920s, alludes to the use of a time clock. Also see punch in , def. 1.
Eject from a military aircraft, as in The pilot punched out just before the plane blew up . [ Slang ; 1960s]
First recorded in 1925–30; noun use of verb phrase punch out
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
And the box, also unchanged since the beginning, features a punch-out spout that can cause a bit of a mess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2024
But Bieber buckled down and got two outs before striking out Christian Bethancourt, the right-hander’s third punch-out to end an inning.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 7, 2022
But the punch-out method made it difficult to craft an aesthetically pleasing, natural-looking hairline upon transplantation.
From Slate ● Jul. 12, 2022
In the fifth inning, with a punch-out of first baseman Eric Hosmer, Scherzer joined baseball’s 3,000-strikeout club.
From New York Times ● Sep. 12, 2021
“That was kind of another wet game. I just remember Hanser had two punch-out force fumbles. I recovered one of them on their sideline.”
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 23, 2018
The most glaring example came against the Cardinals in early May, when he threw six shutout innings without recording a punch out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Quick thinking led him to open the door and punch out Wiggle Inn’s window screens so water would flow through.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026
If he's losing every round and then pulls a punch out of his back pocket, does that throw him right back into the mix?
From BBC ● Apr. 1, 2026
It can punch out the front and rear underbodies which support the car's outer skin and provide a platform for suspension components.
From Reuters ● Apr. 27, 2023
Where was the Boaz that was ready to punch out a guest to defend her?
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Never before in postseason history had a pitcher gone eight or more shutout innings with at least 12 punch-outs and zero walks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2025
“Then the secondary stuff is really nice,” Ross said “You go that deep in the game, you’re bound to, with his stuff, get some extra punch-outs there.”
From Washington Times ● Sep. 5, 2023
He was out-dueled by fellow lefty Shane McClanahan — who went 5 1/3 innings and yielded three hits and two earned runs with five punch-outs.
From Seattle Times ● May 5, 2022
“No matter what, whether he went 0 for 4 with four punch-outs or 4 for 4 with three homers, he’s the same guy every day,” Kendrick said.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 15, 2017
But the movie as a whole is fairly generic action fare: a few punch-outs, a few shootouts, nothing special.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 27, 2014
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.
