rule out
Britishverb
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to dismiss from consideration
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to make impossible; preclude or prevent
the rain ruled out outdoor games
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Eliminate from consideration, exclude, as in The option of starting over again has been ruled out . [Second half of 1800s]
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Prevent, make impossible, as in The snowstorm ruled out our weekly rehearsal . [First half of 1900s]
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.
Roni Kokkola, an information security specialist at the National Cyber Security Centre at Finland's Transport and Communications Agency Traficom, would not rule out cyber interference "as far as Finland is concerned."
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
"If this principle rules out one, it has to rule out the other."
From Science Daily ● Oct. 29, 2026
Initially it said that while unlikely, it could not "rule out" that anonymised data from use of its products may have helped improve its models.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
I would not rule out reaching out for third-party help, if you suspect your father-in-law was an unwitting participant.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 22, 2026
That might seem to rule out both rapid space travel and travel back in time.
From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking
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