tease out

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to extract (information) with difficulty

Idioms and Phrases

Lure out, obtain or extract with effort, as in We had a hard time teasing the wedding date out of him. This term alludes to the literal sense of tease, “untangle or release something with a pointed tool.” [Mid-1900s]

Example Sentences

From that, they can learn what the animals are eating and collect DNA that enables them to identify individuals and tease out family relationships.

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The Conservatives have tabled a slew of parliamentary questions to try to tease out further details about what was known by who and when.

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Kandhari, with his hypnotic Wes Anderson-by-way-of-David Lynch widescreen framing and deliberate tracking shots, seems more concerned with capturing something liminal in Uma’s alternative existence, as if the city were just weird and oppressive enough to tease out any transformation that was already lying dormant.

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There were tens of thousands of listening sessions across the globe, meant to tease out the issues that Catholics most cared about.

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We’re left to tease out their differences.

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