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• way out
  way out

  noun

  the means by which a predicament, dilemma, etc., may be solved.
• way-out
  way-out

  adjective

  advanced in style or technique.

way out

¹ American  

noun

1. the means by which a predicament, dilemma, etc., may be solved.

2. Chiefly British. an exit or exit door, as in a theater.

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way-out ² American  

[wey-out] / ˈweɪˈaʊt /

adjective

Informal.

1. advanced in style or technique.

   way-out jazz.

2. exotic or esoteric in character.

   way-out theories on nutrition.

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way-out British  

adjective

1. extremely unconventional or experimental; avant-garde

2. excellent or amazing

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Etymology

Origin of way-out

1950–55; adj. use of way out far off; see way ², out

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

way out way-out

The rest of us need to find a cogent and workable way out of this self-made mess..

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

He was in trouble in his first season and he found a way out of it to finish in a lofty position.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

Some analysts say so-called “quiet luxury” — the understated but expensive styles found on TV shows like “Succession” — is on its way out, as shoppers turn to more ostentatious pieces.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

That’s the question Richard Rubin and Justin Lahart ask in their story focusing on how the country could grow its way out of the dilemma.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

But now they had forced their way out into the open.

From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler

But in the 1950s, Detroit was still about blue-skying massive, gas-swigging machines and way-out concept cars.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 26, 2026

When he won in Turin he instantly became a sensation — the way-out, pimpled, bandana-wearing face of Burton snowboards and whoever else wanted to write him a check.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 28, 2022

This frolic on the wilder shores of mathematics, by astronomer David Darling and maths prodigy Agnijo Banerjee, aims to bolt the way-out to the day-to-day.

From Nature ● Jan. 15, 2018

On Wednesday France invited Hariri and his family to Paris, providing what French diplomats have described as a way-out for him to leave Saudi Arabia without any side losing face.

From Reuters ● Nov. 16, 2017

It had been a terrific game, full of excitement and mystery and way-out imagining, but it had been a great deal more than that.

From "The Egypt Game" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder