rout

¹ American  

[rout] / raʊt /

noun

1. a defeat attended with disorderly flight; dispersal of a defeated force in complete disorder.

   to put an army to rout; to put reason to rout.

2. any overwhelming defeat.

   a rout of the home team by the state champions.

3. a tumultuous or disorderly crowd of persons.

   Synonyms:

   horde, swarm

4. the rabble or mob.

5. Law. a disturbance of the public peace by three or more persons acting together in a manner that suggests an intention to riot although they do not actually carry out the intention.

6. a large, formal evening party or social gathering.

7. Archaic. a company or band of people.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to disperse in defeat and disorderly flight.

   to rout an army.

2. to defeat decisively.

   to rout an opponent in conversation.

   Synonyms:

   subdue, overcome, overwhelm

rout ² American  

[rout] / raʊt /

verb (used without object)

1. to root.

   pigs routing in the garden.

2. to poke, search, or rummage.

---

verb (used with object)

1. to turn over or dig up (something) with the snout.

2. to find or get by searching, rummaging, etc. (usually followed byout ).

3. to cause to rise from bed (often followed by up orout ).

4. to force or drive out.

5. to hollow out or furrow, as with a scoop, gouge, or machine.

rout ³ American  

[rout] / raʊt /

verb (used without object)

Archaic.

1. to snore.

---

rout ⁴ American  

[rout, root] / raʊt, rut /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to bellow; roar.

---

noun

1. a bellow.

rout ¹ British  

/ raʊt /

noun

1. an overwhelming defeat

2. a disorderly retreat

3. a noisy rabble

4. law a group of three or more people proceeding to commit an illegal act

5. archaic a large party or social gathering

---

verb

1. (tr) to defeat and cause to flee in confusion

rout ² British  

/ raʊt /

verb

1. to dig over or turn up (something), esp (of an animal) with the snout; root

2. (tr; usually foll by out or up) to get or find by searching

3. to force or drive out

   they routed him out of bed at midnight

4. to hollow or gouge out

5. (intr) to search, poke, or rummage

---

Etymology

Origin of rout¹

First recorded in 1200–50; (noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French rute, Old French route “a fraction, detachment,” from Latin rupta, feminine past participle of rumpere “to break”; (verb) derivative of the noun

Origin of rout²

First recorded in 1540–50; alteration of root ²; compare Middle Dutch ruten “to root out”

Origin of rout³

First recorded before 900; Middle English routen, Old English hrūtan; cognate with Old High German hrūzan

Origin of rout⁴

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English rowten, from Old Norse rauta “to bellow”; akin to Latin rudere

Example Sentences

An update from a small logistics company sparked a rout in trucking stocks this past week, with investors worried that shippers would be the next industry disrupted by new AI tools.

From The Wall Street Journal

The London Stock Exchange Group—which sold off heavily in recent sessions on a broader rout for data providers—gained 3.6% on reports of activist investor interest.

From The Wall Street Journal

The London Stock Exchange Group—which sold off heavily in recent sessions on a broader rout of data providers—gains 3.6% on reports of activist investor interest.

From The Wall Street Journal

The historic swing began on Feb. 2, just as a rout in software stocks — dubbed “the Saaspocalypse” by some, a reference to the term “software as a service” — was starting to pick up steam.

From MarketWatch

Super Bowl LX was dominated by the Seattle Seahawks defense in their rout over the New England Patriots — but prediction markets are emerging as another of the night’s big winners.

From MarketWatch

Related Words

• beat
• chase
• clobber
• conquer
• crush
• destroy
• expel
• finish
• kill
• overpower
• repulse
• subdue
• trounce
• vanquish
• whip
• wipe out