dazed or stupefied because of the influence of narcotic drugs.
The spaced-out main characters are the primary feature of a stoner comedy.
dreamily or eerily out of touch with reality or seemingly so; spacey.
He was rushed to the hospital with signs of a concussion, including spaced-out and confused behavior.
An Americanism dating back to 1965–70; on the pattern of phrasal verbs with out marking completed action, such as tired out; space apparently by association with “outer space” as, metaphorically, a place outside normal consciousness
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But in “Masquerade,” six cohorts of 60 audience members need to be spaced out evenly as they take in the show in a 30,000-square-foot, five-floor warehouse once occupied by an art supply company.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026
Truthful and concerning accounts, all of them—but few and far between, spaced out over a span of years to make it seem like these are common rather than exceptional occurrences.
From Slate • Aug. 11, 2025
My whole body, mind included, felt numb and spaced out.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 30, 2024
Her first college game came in an eerily quiet setting: no fans, players spaced out on bleachers and some wearing masks to protect against the coronavirus.
From New York Times • Apr. 2, 2024
Lifeless except for overcrowded, overflowing evacuation centers, looking like anthills spaced out at five-mile intervals.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
