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rule out

British  

verb

  1. to dismiss from consideration

  2. to make impossible; preclude or prevent

    the rain ruled out outdoor games
"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
rule out Idioms  

  1. Eliminate from consideration, exclude, as in The option of starting over again has been ruled out . [Second half of 1800s]

  2. Prevent, make impossible, as in The snowstorm ruled out our weekly rehearsal . [First half of 1900s]

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.