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Synonyms

put out

American  
[poot out] / ˈpʊt ˈaʊt /

verb phrase

  1. to extinguish, as a fire.

    Don't forget to put the candle out before you go to bed.

  2. to confuse; embarrass.

    It put her out badly when she went to pay and realized her wallet was still at home.

  3. to vex or annoy.

    He was put out when I missed our appointment.

  4. to subject to inconvenience.

    I don't want to put you out, so I'll wait until after dinner to stop by.

  5. Baseball, Softball, Cricket. to cause to be removed from an opportunity to reach base or score; retire.

    Ramirez was put out at third for the second out of the inning.

  6. to publish.

    She puts out a new mystery every other year.

  7. to go out to sea.

    The fishermen put out well before sunrise.

  8. to manufacture; prepare; produce.

    The factory puts out thousands of candy bars an hour.

  9. to exert; apply.

    They were putting out their best efforts.

  10. Slang: Offensive. (usually of a woman) to demonstrate willingness or offer to engage in sexual intercourse.


idioms

  1. put someone out of their misery,

    1. to euthanize.

      We had to put the dog out of his misery, and everyone is still upset.

    2. to end a period of waiting, suspense, or the like.

      After she agonized for days about whether she'd be laid off, upper management finally put her out of her misery and sent her home.

  2. put oneself out, to take pains; go to trouble or expense.

    She has certainly put herself out to see that everyone is comfortable.

put out British  

verb

  1. (often passive)

    1. to annoy; anger

    2. to confound or disturb; confuse

  2. to extinguish or douse (a fire, light, etc)

    he put out the fire

  3. to poke forward

    to put out one's tongue

  4. to be or present a source of inconvenience or annoyance to (a person)

    I hope I'm not putting you out

  5. to issue or publish; broadcast

    the authorities put out a leaflet

  6. to render unconscious

  7. to dislocate

    he put out his shoulder in the accident

  8. to show or exert

    the workers put out all their energy in the campaign

  9. to pass, give out (work to be done) at different premises

  10. to lend (money) at interest

  11. cricket to dismiss (a player or team)

  12. baseball to cause (a batter or runner) to be out by a fielding play

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. baseball a play in which the batter or runner is put out

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
put out More Idioms  
  1. Extinguish, as in We put out the fire before we turned in . [Early 1500s]

  2. Also, put to sea . Leave a port or harbor, as in They put out yesterday morning . [Late 1500s]

  3. Publish, as in They put out a weekly newsletter . [Early 1500s]

  4. Engage in sex. This usage is applied solely to women, as in She had a reputation for putting out . [ Vulgar slang ; mid-1900s] Also see put one out .


Etymology

Origin of put out

First recorded in 1350–1400; 1730–40 put out for def. 5; 1925–30 put out for def. 10

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.

The WRU are trying to put out fires to get to their end goal.

From BBC

"This is our home and we always want to put out a performance worthy of the Queensland jersey," said Reds coach Les Kiss, who will take over from Joe Schmidt as Australia coach in July.

From Barron's

As if he were put out with me, Grandpa snorted and said, “Well, use your head and think a little. Remember everything I told you about those monkeys and do a little figuring.”

From Literature

Production on Miss Nenna’s videos has slowed down in recent months as she has focused her time on raising her children, but she has goals to put out two videos each month in 2026.

From Los Angeles Times

"We noticed that we've put out a whole line of chocolate bars, and then all of a sudden there's only one left," she said.

From BBC